The Jack of Hearts
by ablackenedrose
Summary: After being attacked by his date, Issei Hyoudou's last thoughts are sorrowful. Thanks to the Red Dragon Emperor, he is rescued by Heaven's most beautiful woman. Now, he has to deal with Highschool DxD, with all the problems that comes with... from the opposite side. AU. Less perverted Issei. Major OOC Gabriel. DISCONTINUED, as I hate this fic at this point.
1. Give a Reason

_W_ _hoa,_ _dark angel, ridin' high, I can see through you_

 _You learned your tricks by the river Styx, where the Devil gets his due ~_

 _I do not own Highschool DxD._ _If I did, it would bear no resemblance to the current series._

* * *

Issei had been planning every detail of the date meticulously ever since Yuuma had asked him out. He didn't really know her, but she was incredibly sweet, and cute as a kitten. She didn't even care about his reputation, if she knew about it.

In hindsight, that should have been his first warning, but Issei was so over the moon that he did not see it.

The date, for its part, went off without a single hitch, happening almost exactly how Issei had planned it; Yuuma seemed to enjoy herself, and Issei managed to be on his absolute best behavior, keeping all his lecherous thoughts under tight control.

So there they stood, within the secluded courtyard, no one else in sight as the late afternoon sun laid a golden glow down on the two.

"Issei..." Yuuma said, her voice kind. "Would you mind doing something for me?"

Issei felt a burst of excitement race through him at what he thought was coming.

"Yeah, sure? What is it?" he asked, trying not to sound too eager.

She turned to face him, smiling.

"Would you die for me?"

* * *

For several seconds, Issei did not move an inch, what she had said simply not registering.

"...what? Yuuma… I don't… I don't think I heard you right..."

"Oh?" she said, tipping her head. "I asked… would you please die for me?"

Then, Issei saw the impossible.

Two black wings erupted from Yuuma's back.

Issei was completely frozen; whether it was shock or fear, he would never be able to say for sure.

"I had a lot of fun these last few days…" she said, giggling. "You're a real sucker, you know that? Made my job easier, though."

She raised her arm so that it was parallel to the ground, her palm facing down.

Within the grasp of her palm, what could only be described as solid light began to appear.

After a heartbeat, it began to change shape, taking the form of…

 _Is that a spear?!_

Only at that moment did Issei's legs unfreeze. He tried to turn, tried to run away.

He made it no more than three steps before the impossible spear pierced him through the chest.

* * *

For a moment, Issei stayed on his feet, his chest numbing.

Then, the pain hit him. It was an indescribable agony; even years later, Issei was never able to come close to capturing the scope of the anguish that flooded him. And with that pain, Issei immediately fell to his knees. An instant later, his upper body followed, leaving him sprawled face-down on the cobbled stones. His blood poured from the gaping wound, staining the paving a deep crimson.

Ears ringing from pain, he could only just make out Yuuma's words to him.

"If you want to blame someone for this, blame God. After all, he gave you the Sacred Gear."

Yuuma's visage suddenly appeared before him, her adorable face twisted into a cruel sneer.

"Good-bye, Issei Hyoudou."

Then, she was gone.

* * *

For a moment, Issei's mind was so thoroughly lanced by the brilliant torment that he could not even begin to think. Only when his chest started to go numb did his mind begin to work correctly again.

Issei was not a religious person by any means. His belief in any god was essentially nil, and he had never bothered attending a single service for any faith.

Yet as he lay there, his mind began to give his own last apology. Just as with the pain, even years later, he could not explain why his mind had gone in that direction.

 _If… if anyone's listening… I'm sorry… I don't ask for… another chance. I've messed up too much in my life already… not that I wouldn't take one, but… just know that I'm sorry… I never gave my thanks for what I had… just cared about being a lech… I'm so, so sorry…_

Even as the thoughts escaped his mind, Issei's vision began to fail him. Millimeter by millimeter, his eyesight began to turn completely black, willpower meaning nothing when faced with blood loss.

It was only moments before his sight was swept into oblivion that he saw the light form a few meters away from him.

* * *

As soon as the Seraph called Gabriel stepped from the cross, she got a clear view of just what had caused the halting, somewhat stammered prayer she heard ringing within her mind. The one that had seemed… louder than most.

The lone female Seraph was no stranger to bloodshed, and her stomach did not turn at all at the sight of the gutted young teen before her.

Her heart, however, was washed in pure sympathy for him.

Unflinchingly, she walked over to the poor boy's body, noting the enormous wound in his chest and storing the information in her mind.

A moment later, she knelt down next to the dying teen, laid a hand on his body, and murmured a blessing under her breath. She did not bother to try to keep her white robes dry, and they ran scarlet with the boy's shed blood.

Gabriel felt sadness course through her, both for what had happened to the boy and being unable to provide him any comfort in his last breaths.

The Seraph knew the brutality of the world better than most, but she still held deep convictions towards the suffering of innocents. And in her mind, there was nothing that the teen lying on the ground before her could possibly have done to deserve such a violent end.

After finishing the blessing, she pulled her fingers back and slowly, very slowly, and moved to rise from her kneeling position.

She was stopped, however, by the booming voice that crashed into her ears.

 **"Wouldn't have been my first choice** **or my fifth** **, but I suppose I can't be picky."**

It was a voice she had last heard centuries ago, but the Seraph knew she would never forget it.

"What are the chances?" Gabriel murmured.

 **"Ah, _Gabriel_. I felt that aura and I **_**thought**_ **it might be you. Let's not waste time with formalities. I want you to keep my host on the mortal coil. I know you possess the strength to do so."**

"And why would you want that, Red Dragon Emperor?"

 **"I heard his prayer. He deserves better than to die here."**

"As do many who die too young. I cannot interfere in mortal affairs beyond the church without good reason."

 _Do it, please... do what I think you're going to..._

A snort came from the boy's body. **"Fine. You want a good reason? I'll give you one** **. If you save this boy, then God help me, I will make him into your ally,** **no matter my own feelings** **. If you do not…"**

Gabriel sighed, not surprised at the blatant threat but happy it had come nonetheless.

 **"** **Well, Gabriel? We don't have more than a minute. Make your choice and make it wisely."**

The female Seraph shook her head, pretending to be reluctant despite her happiness at being allowed to save the boy. "If you wish to play that card, I suppose I have no choice but to accede. However..."

Still kneeling, she withdrew a box from her robes, opened it, and grabbed the first item her fingers touched. To mortal eyes, it would appear an impractically large playing card; to her eyes, it was perhaps one of her greatest tools.

"...I will be doing that on _my_ terms, Ddraig."

Ddraig said nothing as she laid the card on the boy's body, the Seraph exhaling as it was absorbed into his flesh.

A few moments later, the teenager's enormous wound began to seal. Flesh and blood slid back into place against gravity, save for the blood on Gabriel's clothing.

The first of the systems had worked.

When the wound had sealed, she carefully picked her new Saint up, his weight barely registered by her immensely powerful arms. Then, she formed a cross.

A few moments later, the courtyard stood empty.

* * *

As soon as the Seraph arrived in the building in First Heaven where her Brave Saints resided, she was met by one of its only two residents. The Queen of Hearts, Griselda Quarta, had been reading one of the church's newspapers and sipping tea in the entrance hall. As soon as she heard the door open, however, she looked up. An instant later, Gabriel's Queen dropped into a formal bow.

"Greetings, Lady Gabriel."

"Rise, my dear Queen," Gabriel said.

When she did, the first thing to exit the Queen of Heart's mouth was the obvious question.

"Who is this?" She gestured to the unconscious boy in her King's arms as she said this.

"This young man is my newest Saint, my Jack," Gabriel explained.

She indicated for her Queen to take the boy. "If you would, please bring him to one of the unused rooms and lay him down, and let me know if he awakens."

Griselda nodded. "It will be done, Lady Gabriel."

* * *

As the Queen of Hearts strode down the hallway containing the bedrooms, she took in the brown-haired teen's face, running it past every single exorcist and saint she could think of. For all of her recollections, however, Griselda Quarta was completely unable to match his face to anyone she knew.

 _He must be from another part of the world…_

Picking one of the ten empty rooms arbitrarily, she entered and laid the boy down on the bed.

Only when he was splayed out did she notice the gaping hole in his shirt, exposing his bare skin. She frowned at this.

 _That's odd…_ _did_ _he…?_

The Queen of Hearts shook her head slowly, eyes shut, before turning away from the bed and walking over to the bookshelf. Withdrawing a particular volume of fiction, she took a seat at the table halfway between the bookshelf against the wall and the bed.

As she began to read, she wondered about the boy lying unconscious on the silk sheets.

* * *

"So, you've taken a new Saint," Michael said dryly. "I suppose you have an explanation as to why you broke the rules of reincarnation so blatantly?"

Gabriel faced Heaven's leader and the other two Great Seraphim, her own brothers, within Zebel. After handing her Jack over to Griselda, Gabriel had gone straight to the home of the Seraphs to change her robes and then lay out exactly what she had done.

"Yes, as a matter of fact," Gabriel replied, her tone flat. "I do indeed. That boy is the host of the Welsh Dragon, and by extension, the wielder of the Boosted Gear – though I doubt he is aware of it."

"How would _you_ know, then?" Uriel asked, his baritone voice echoing off the halls as he narrowed his eyes. "If even he himself knows nothing of the Red Dragon Emperor's presence, then how can you be certain of him possessing the Boosted Gear?"

Gabriel shrugged. "Very simple – the Welsh Dragon himself spoke to me through him. He demanded I save the boy, else I would earn the dragon's eternal enmity towards Heaven."

"That is... half an explanation at best, Gabriel," Michael said, shaking his head. "It fails to answer why you chose to use one of your cards rather than simply bringing him here for treatment. The latter would have achieved the same result."

"Perhaps, but I felt that this might be the better way," Gabriel said. "After all, if the Red Dragon Emperor was willing to put aside his enmity towards us simply to save his host, perhaps the boy fits at least one of the two requirements for sainthood."

"So then," Uriel said, "your entire justification is based on a shaky extrapolation made based on the actions of a completely separate creature?" He raised an eyebrow. "I'm not trying to be pessimistic, Gabriel, but I _think_ you may have taken the wrong course of action."

Gabriel's teeth clenched. "Need I also tell you that whoever attacked this boy was almost certainly not human? If his injury was any indication, it was likely done with some sort of magic. If that person attacked him again, what defense would he have? If he doesn't have the ability to manifest the Boosted Gear or any knowledge of how to use it, he's nothing more than human, and evidently whoever this was wanted him dead. What would prevent them from trying again?"

There was no answer from the other three, and Gabriel barely gave them time to give one.

"And another thing – yes, I reincarnated him because of the Red Dragon Emperor and wouldn't have done so otherwise. That does _not_ mean I will not care for him as I do my Ace and Queen. He has much to learn, but it can be done. He can be taught our father's teachings."

"We shall see," Uriel said, his tone noncommittal.

"Yes, you shall," Gabriel replied. Her head turned to face the leader of Heaven. "Now, Michael, I have a request."

Her brother tipped his head to one side.

"I ask that you research a certain Holy Sword so that it might be employed for my Jack's benefit. You know the one that I speak of. It shouldn't be too difficult; after all, most of the work is already done for us, and we can be sure the last living wielder would be willing to help us."

"I'll consider it," Michael said after taking a long, slow breath.

Gabriel frowned, her irritation at her brother's ambiguous reply evident to all three of the other Great Seraphim. "Well then, if you'll excuse me, I have a few things I need to address in First Heaven."

She vanished into a cross.

* * *

When their sister had gone, two of the three brothers turned to look at the third.

"I notice _you_ didn't have any complaints, Raphael," Michael said. "Do you approve of her actions?" There was no hostility in the question, but it was not entirely friendly, either.

The blonde-haired Seraph shrugged. "If she thinks it was for the best, I'll stand behind her. If taking this young man as a Saint backfires, that's ultimately on her."

The answer was not unexpected to Michael or Uriel; of all the Seraphs, Raphael had been by far the harshest critic of the standards the Brave Saint system ran by, even more so than Gabriel herself. Raphael, throughout the process of creating the system, had insisted that who was offered reincarnation should be solely determined by the individual Seraph, rather than a collective rule.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to finish some paperwork in Fifth Heaven," Raphael said, vanishing before either of his brothers could get in a word.

Soon after, Uriel also excused himself.

* * *

Left alone in Zebel, Michael was left to consider his sister's request.

 _If her new Jack truly is the Red Dragon Emperor…_

Michael knew that the current White Dragon was a battle-crazed maniac, and quite the powerhouse, to boot. The leader of Heaven felt pity race through him for the poor young man now known as the Jack of Hearts. He hummed to himself, his sister's words leading his thoughts to a dark corner, to his own shameful misjudgment of trust and to the deaths of innocents.

But he also knew that this new Saint was going to need every single advantage he could possibly get to stand a chance against the White Dragon. Beyond that, the leader of Heaven was quite aware that twin Dragon Emperors were almost guaranteed to clash at some point. It rarely happened any other way.

It did not take long for Michael to come to a decision, and when he did, he vanished into a cross of his own.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _If you're wondering why I'_ _m_ _rewrit_ _ing_ _this story yet again, it's because tormenting you all is fun._

 _Well, that, and also because there are so many things I glazed over and got wrong in canon that it's kinda crazy._

 _Anyway, Gabriel's not meant to come across as heartless the way she might when dealing with Ddraig. It's more meant to communicate that without extraordinary circumstances, her hands are essentially tied._


	2. A Card in the Deck

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Immediately upon concluding her discussion with her brother, Gabriel returned to the building in First Heaven where her Saints resided.

Before her newest Brave Saint awoke, she had a few questions for the dragon sealed within him...

* * *

As soon as Gabriel entered the room where her Jack lay unconscious, her Queen rose and dropped into a formal bow. "He has yet to awaken, my Lady," Griselda offered, her tone composed and dignified.

Gabriel gestured for her to stand. "Rise, Griselda, and return outside. I shall take up your vigil."

As she stood, Griselda's tone shifted from her normal elegance to one of surprise. "So soon, my Lady? It's no trouble for me to watch him."

Gabriel shook her head. "There is no need, my Queen. He is my Brave Saint and I shall wait with him until he regains consciousness. I only asked that you watch him in the event that he regained consciousness whilst I was in Sixth Heaven." The King of Hearts smiled. "Now, as I said before, leave him to me."

Her Queen nodded, not entirely understanding her King's reasoning but accepting it nonetheless, and departed, leaving Gabriel alone with her Jack.

The Seraph waited around half a minute, before turning around and striding to the door and running her hand over it. Slowly, she chanted a slight spell under her breath.

A moment later, the door was sealed to sound and soul.

After several seconds, Gabriel walked over to the bed upon which her unconscious new Saint lay, and took a seat next to him.

"I have a few questions for you."

The only response she received to this was silence, and Gabriel sighed.

"You know that I am addressing _you_ , Red Dragon Emperor. Don't pretend you don't hear me."

Several more seconds of silence ensued, before the familiar, booming voice answered.

 **"Ask what you will, but I will not guarantee an answer."**

Another sigh escaped Gabriel before she spoke again. "Is the boy aware of your existence?"

 **"No."**

She was about to ask another question, but the dragon within her Saint spoke again before she could, his voice filled with disdain for the female Seraph.

 **"My turn now. What have you done to my host? You've done more than just heal him, that much I can tell."**

"Indeed," Gabriel replied. "This boy is now a Brave Saint, an Angel in Heaven's service."

 **"How clever of you, Gabriel. I guess it's no surprise that you'd have a trick up your sleeve."** The dragon's tone was bone dry, leaving no doubt as to what he truly thought of her actions.

"It was no trick," Gabriel argued, not surprised in the slightest at the rather mocking tone the dragon took with those words. "You demanded that I save him. You did not specify how you wanted me to do that."

The Red Dragon Emperor said nothing.

"Now then, my turn. How long have you been awake within this boy?"

The dragon sealed within the Jack replied instantly to that question. **"Since the instant he was attacked. Now, being that you answered him, you must have heard his prayer. He was quite the lustful teen, that much I know for sure. How do you intend to keep that from making him fall, hmm?"**

Gabriel shrugged. "Consider this a test of the second of the Brave Saint's systems. In theory, his mind should be purged of sinful thoughts and desires when he awakens."

 **"What is that but a form of brainwashing?"**

"It does not alter their memories, nor does it force them to be loyal to Heaven," Gabriel snapped. "If my Jack wishes to rediscover sin and dye his wings black, nothing is stopping him."

 **"Nothing except you."**

"You speak as though I could stop him. I have neither the time nor the inclination to police his every thought and action, and neither do my other Saints."

 **"There are many Angels in Heaven. And holding him prisoner would be anything but a difficult prospect for you."**

The King of Hearts was, despite herself, growing furious at the Welsh Dragon's barbed comments, though she hid it masterfully.

"You speak as though I don't care for my Sa-"

 **"Spare me the lecture, Gabriel. You only saved him because of me. That's a fact and we both know it. I do hope you will care for him as you claim to care for your other so-called "Saints". But then again, I can't _force_ you to do anything. _Good day_."**

Gabriel ground her teeth, forced to accept the incredibly rude dismissal of the dragon sealed within her Saint.

She took a few deep breaths as she stood. Once she did, she walked over to the bookshelf, pulled out a random volume, sat at the table, and flipped it open. After a moment, her eyes began to scan the pages absentmindedly.

 _Rest, Jack of Hearts. I shall stand vigil as long as I must._

* * *

Once Issei Hyoudou's eyesight had gone black, he had fully expected to never regain consciousness. One can imagine his surprise to awaken at all, let alone in the most comfortable bed he had ever rested upon.

What was more, he felt as hale and hearty as he ever had been, save the exhaustion that was fast draining from his mind.

Oh, and the splitting headache. That too.

Just as Issei sat up and rubbed his eyes, a feminine voice reached his ears.

"Welcome back."

When Issei looked up, his eyes were met by the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes upon. Her voluptuous frame was hidden beneath her robes, but her clothing did not hide her perfect face, or her lengthy blonde hair.

 _Holy shit... never thought I'd be this close to a woman like this...!_

Yet, to his own shock, his next words were not comments about her figure or her looks. Instead, it was a simple, rather _normal_ reaction.

"Wh-... where am I?" Issei asked, his voice hesitant and uncertain.

The woman smiled. "You're in Heaven, of course."

Issei's eyes went wide for a moment before he buried his face in his hands, his perverse thoughts being replaced by despair.

 _So that's it... I bled out there... Yuuma killed me..._

He didn't hear the footsteps until they were right next to the bed.

The woman sat down on the bed next to him and laid a hand on his shoulder, a mischievous half-grin on her face. "Now, now. No need to look so downcast, Brave Saint."

Issei turned bright red at having her this close to him.

his next words came out somewhat awkwardly. "Brave... Saint? Is that what we're called when we die?"

The woman's smile grew as her arm slid around Issei's back, while her other hand cupped his cheek.

Issei was certain that a new object would be visible from outer space, if it existed here.

Gabriel, for her part, was fully aware of the effect she was having on Issei by getting so close, and was quite amused by it.

"Dead, my dear Saint? Oh, no, no, no, not at all. You're very much alive."

"B-but..." Issei spluttered, trying to keep his focus on her words and not her body. "If I'm not dead, how am I in Heaven?"

The woman chuckled. "Isn't it obvious? I brought you here."

Issei closed his eyes, trying and failing to make sense of the woman's words. "I'm... not following at all."

The woman's hands left him, causing Issei to open his eyes as she stood and turned to face him.

"Perhaps, young Saint, introductions are in order."

With that, a dozen white wings erupted from her back.

"I am Gabriel, one of the four Great Seraphim of Heaven."

For a moment, Issei could only gape. Then, he proceeded to make an incredibly awkward attempt at a bow whilst remaining on the bed.

"It-it's very n-nice to meet you!" he stammered.

The Seraph giggled, tickled by her Saint's total lack of grace. "As you were, young man."

Issei returned to being seated cross-legged on the silken sheets, and proceeded to reply with his own name. "I'm... Issei Hyoudou..." he said, not really sure _how_ to address the Seraph. Luckily for him, she didn't seem to mind this.

"Issei Hyoudou, hmm?" Gabriel replied, touching a finger to her lips. "A lovely name. It's nice to meet you, as well." Gabriel hid her wings from view in an attempt to make her Saint feel slightly less self-conscious.

"Now then, Issei, I'm sure you're bursting with questions..."

Issei nodded mutely.

"Well then," Gabriel said, shrugging, "Ask away."

"Err..." Issei mumbled, settling on the most obvious question first. "How am I not dead?" Issei ran his fingers across his torso. "And where's the hole in my chest?"

Gabriel's smile disappeared, and her voice strained almost imperceptibly. "Issei... when you were dying, do you remember praying?"

Issei bit his lip. "Uh... not really... everything after I got stabbed is kind of blurry..."

"Well, you did," Gabriel said, her eyes showing slight sadness. You began with "If anyone's listening...", if I recall. To make a long story short, someone was - me. While I normally would have sent a lower Angel, I personally descended in an attempt to comfort you as you died. Ultimately, I was driven to intervene and save your life. The reincarnation process heals all wounds."

"So..." Issei said, tone unsure, "...why did you come to _me_ , specifically?"

Gabriel's reply was quick, and her voice had returned to normal. "I heard your prayer, Issei, and your words were rather interesting to me. You weren't begging for us to save you; rather, you made an apology for your sins and showed regret for your actions in life _before_ your soul would have been judged. I admit that perhaps I was too easily swayed, but I gave your soul a blessing." She grinned. "If you must know, Issei, you can think of that as a... stamp of approval. It would have let those who were to judge your soul know that I was vouching for your worthiness to enter Heaven."

Issei swallowed. "You... you think I might have made it?"

The grin widened slightly. "I think there's a good chance." She shrugged. "Irrelevant now, of course. As a Brave Saint you have the run of the place."

Issei nodded. "You've called me that a couple of times. What's a "Brave Saint", exactly?"

"A Brave Saint is a human or other being who has been reincarnated as an Angel in the service of the Angel who reincarnated them," Gabriel explained.

She held up a hand as he attempted to speak again. "Allow me to elaborate. Effectively, think of being a Brave Saint as being a card in a deck. I, as an example, am ranked as a King, and command all of the Saints I resurrect. They, in turn, all belong to my suit, which is Hearts. As you would expect, the other cards commanded by the King rank from Queen to Ace, along with every card in between. There are also Joker cards, but you needn't concern yourself with those, as you are not one."

The obvious question didn't spring to mind; rather, Issei's thoughts had snagged on something Gabriel had said before explaining the system.

 _Reincarnated as an Angel?!_

Evidently the shock showed on his face, as Gabriel frowned, concerned. "Is something wrong, Issei?"

Issei swallowed nervously. "You... you said that you reincarnated me as a Brave Saint... and that Brave Saints are Angels... does that mean..."

Gabriel nodded, her smile returning at the shock that crossed Issei's face.

"N-no way... there's no way... I can't... I'm... I can't be... this has to be a dream..." Issei began muttering incoherently, more to himself than Gabriel.

Gabriel shook her head, amused. "Let me assure you, Issei, this is no dream."

With that, Gabriel used a very tiny amount of her power to force Issei's form to change.

" _Aah!_ " Issei yelped at the sudden pain. Luckily for him, it vanished just as quickly, leaving him to focus entirely on what had just sprung from his back.

"I..." Issei stammered, utterly lost for words as he stared at the pair of feathered white wings that now extended from behind his shoulder blades. He began to hyperventilate, utterly overwhelmed, able to do little more than shakily reach out to touch his own wings, to confirm they were real.

Feeling his fingers touch his wing in both appendages was the confirmation he needed.

"This... this is _awesome!_ " Issei finally exclaimed, his voice quite happy.

Issei then remembered that one of the Great Seraphim stood before him, and he was promptly overcome with utter mortification.

Gabriel, for her part, was giggling behind her hand, a smile on her face. "I'm glad you think so, my young Saint."

"Umm... Gabriel?" Issei stammered, trying to appear calm and detached and failing miserably.

Her hand still hiding her mouth, Gabriel gave her reply. "Yes, Issei?"

"You said that you command all the cards between Queen and Ace of Hearts... right?"

Gabriel nodded, not entirely sure what her Saint was getting at.

"So that makes me your servant, then?" Issei questioned, desperately hoping the question wouldn't offend her.

Gabriel shook her head. "Not exactly. You're less comparable to a servant and more to a person who happens to take direct orders from me. It's closer to the relationship between a higher-ranking military officer and a lower-ranked enlisted man."

Issei digested this momentarily before the next question spilled out.

"...And... what card did you use on me?" Issei asked nervously, chewing his lower lip.

Gabriel's hand returned to her side, but her smile remained. "I was wondering how long you'd take to get to that question. Look at the back of your right hand."

Only then did Issei notice the large, red-glowing "J" imprinted on the back of his palm.

"That letter on your hand, Issei, marks you as a Jack."

* * *

After several minutes of having Issei practice manifesting his wings and halo until he could do it with barely a thought, she let the questions flow out of him.

The question-and-answer session went on for several hours, with Issei tossing out hundreds of inquiries regarding the supernatural world in general, how Heaven worked, and the exact nature of the Devils and Fallen Angels, all while he did a wonderful job (by his own metric) of avoiding staring at anything but his King's face.

By the metric of the average person, he was blatantly staring at her chest half the time.

As one might expect, of particular interest to Issei Hyoudou was the concept of "falling".

"Now don't misunderstand, simply _having_ sinful thoughts or desires will not make you fall," Gabriel attempted to assure him. "If it would, I guarantee that there would not be a single Angel in Heaven right now. You cannot, however, succumb to temptation and indulge those desires - _that_ is how one falls. Do you understand now?"

Issei nodded, feeling slight relief wash through him.

Gabriel, however, must have known this, given her next words.

"Oh, and Issei, if you're concerned about your rather... _lecherous_ mindset, you needn't be."

Issei stared at her, lost for words and redder than a tomato.

Gabriel chuckled. "For a supposed pervert... you've been _remarkably_ restrained. I suppose it's just proof that the system works."

At that moment, it occurred to Issei that, by all rights, he should be all over this woman, and that he _never_ should have been able to hold even the most basic conversation.

Yet he had managed to keep his tongue held and his eyes at least somewhat focused.

"What the..." Issei muttered to himself, looking down at his hands. "What the heck...? What's happened to me?"

Gabriel shrugged, still grinning. "A side effect of reincarnation via the Brave Saint system, something of a... purge of your mind's sins. It's meant to be nothing more than a ceremony, though I must think that you would have fallen the moment I reincarnated you if it wasn't in place." She chuckled. "You have a blank slate on which to carve your new life story, Issei. Use it well... or at least, try to be a little less blatant when staring at a woman's chest."

The Seraph noted with amusement just how easy it was to get her Saint flustered as his face turned crimson once more.

At that moment, Gabriel's smile vanished. "Now then, Issei, if you've no more questions, I have a few for you."

Issei's mind was yanked back to reality at her words. "Yes! Anything!"

"Describe the person who attacked you."

Issei scratched his head. "Well..." he said, not sure of exactly where to start. "She... uh... she had wings, kind of like mine. But they were black, so I guess she was a Fallen Angel. As for anything else... well, the name she gave me was "Yuuma Amano", but I'm guessing that was made up..."

Gabriel sighed. "I suppose it was a stretch. On another note, do you live in Kuoh, where you were attacked?"

Issei nodded, not sure what the issue was.

The Seraph before him frowned. "Hmm... That presents a complication, Issei."

Issei stared at her, his mind a blank.

"The area you call home is the territory of not one, but _two_ High-class Devils. Both are actually siblings of the Four Devil Kings. If you come into their territory without their permission, you could reignite the war."

Issei's eyes met the bed. "Oh... I see the problem..." He blinked, before looking up. "Wait a minute. If that's their territory, then how come _you_ could go there without causing a problem?"

"Technically, Issei, I cannot. While most Devils would not be so cruel as to deny the dying an Angel's comfort, it may possibly create problems in the future. I do hope you'll be willing to stand behind my actions in that intrusion?"

Issei nodded mutely.

Gabriel strode over to the bed and laid a comforting hand on the teenager's shoulder. "Also, don't misunderstand, Issei, I'm not saying that you'll never be able to return, just that you cannot return right this moment. I'll be getting into contact with both the Devil Kings this concerns; they're fairly reasonable people and they should understand the situation."

The Seraph suddenly smiled at him. "Off that topic, I think it's time you and my Queen met properly."

* * *

After replacing Issei's torn shirt, the King undid the seal and departed the room, returning a couple of minutes later with another woman.

"Play nice, you two," Gabriel said, winking at Issei before vanishing once more, leaving Issei to look over the woman he'd been left alone with. She was slightly shorter than Gabriel, but bore an uncanny resemblance to her besides that, save her hair being straight instead of curly.

Issei managed to avoid staring at her rather well-built figure thanks to her more concealing robes and _much_ sterner face.

"I am Griselda Quarta," the woman said, her tone pleasant. "I am Gabriel's Queen. And you are...?"

"Err... I'm Issei Hyoudou... I'm her Jack, I guess..." Issei said, stumbling over his words. _Oh yeah, real smooth, Issei. Great first impression._

"So, Issei," Griselda followed, completely ignoring Issei's rather awkward words, "How old are you?"

"Err... seventeen."

The Queen of Hearts nodded. "Hmm... a rather young age for a Brave Saint, but I suppose there are no actual age restrictions on the system. So, what role did you serve in the church?"

Issei tipped his head to one side, confused. "I... uh..."

Griselda frowned. "Well, I was an exorcist. What did you do?"

Issei shrugged, helpless. "Not much of anything, really... I'm not sure I ever even went _into_ a church while I was human..."

Griselda's mouth dropped open, and stayed that way long enough that Issei was sure she would start attracting flies.

Upon _finally_ closing her mouth, Griselda's voice had switched to a tone of pure incredulity.

" _Why_ exactly did Gabriel choose to reincarnate you, of all people?"

Issei shrugged once more. "Ask her," he replied, a slight annoyance entering his tone despite his best effort to conceal it. "I was unconscious when she turned me into her Jack, courtesy of a hole in my gut."

Just after Issei finished, the door opened slightly. Half a moment later, a head of blonde hair peeked through the resulting gap.

"She's gone? Great!"

The door swung wide, and the figure, revealed to be a young man, let himself in, carrying three Styrofoam boxes. From the boxes wafted the smell of curry.

Griselda pinched her nose and sighed. "Dulio, who told you that you could come in here?"

The young man, evidently named Dulio, shrugged, his face set in an impish half-grin. "Nobody. I just thought I'd come meet the new Brave Saint. All of First Heaven's already heard about him, you know.

His head shifted towards Issei, who hadn't moved from the bed for several hours. "Dulio Gesualdo, former exorcist and Lord Michael's Joker, at your service!"

For the third time that day, Issei introduced himself.

"Well then, Issei," Dulio said, his carefree tone a striking contrast to Griselda's, "You hungry at all?"

"Uh... sure, I guess."

An instant later, there was a box of curry and chopsticks in his hand, and Issei dug in. He hadn't realized it before, but he was _famished_.

Dulio grinned before offering a box to Griselda. When she refused, he shrugged, sat at the table and began devouring _both_ boxes of curry.

Griselda covered her face with her hand. "Remind me how you avoid being tossed out of Heaven for gluttony, again?"

Dulio shrugged again. "The Seraphs like me," he said, his mouth half-full.

As they ate, Dulio asked the same question about his non-existent time in the church as Griselda. When Issei gave the same answer, however, Dulio's response was very different.

"Eh, even if you weren't particularly faithful, Lady Gabriel must have had her reasons. I'm sure it'll work out for the best."

Griselda spent several seconds staring at Dulio, shocked, before he noticed. His response was a simple, deadpan "What?"

"How can you be so flippant about this?" Griselda sputtered. "What use to Heaven is a Saint who has not even read the Bible?"

For the first time since he'd entered the room, Dulio's smile vanished.

"Griselda, you aren't being at all fair to him," he said, nodding at Issei. "Just because he wasn't faithful as a human doesn't mean he isn't willing to serve as a Brave Saint as well as any believer."

Dulio's gaze flipped back to Issei. "You _are_ willing to do that, correct?"

Issei immediately nodded without a second's hesitation.

Dulio's grin returned. "Well then, Issei Hyoudou... welcome to the deck of the Brave Saints!"

For the first time since he'd awoken in Heaven, Issei _didn't_ feel horribly awkward about himself.

* * *

 _And cut._


	3. Viewpoint of the Cynic

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei Hyoudou, the Jack of Hearts, was bathed in flame. Every way he looked, fire consumed all.

And yet he wasn't being incinerated; in fact, he didn't feel the slightest bit hot.

 _What's going on?!_

For several seconds, Issei looked around wildly in panic, expecting to be swallowed by the blaze any second.

Then his circumstances grew even more bizarre, as Issei caught glimpses of something enormous moving _within_ the flame.

Issei closed his eyes and shook his head, the sight of whatever it was making his eyes water. When looked at one way, the thing appeared to be shrouded by the inferno; when looked at another way, it appeared to be _part of_ the inferno.

Either way, the sight wasn't doing anything to help him understand what he perceived.

 **"As the Angels said countless times to humans, fear not."**

Issei jumped back slightly, simultaneously knowing and refusing to believe that the deep, booming voice that had just blasted his ears was the fiery being before him.

"Wh- What are you? _Who_ are you?"

 **"I suppose you would not know, given that we have not spoken before now. But rest assured, Issei Hyoudou, you have heard of me."**

With that, the flames surrounding the being dissipated and revealed the massive, scaled beast beneath, Issei's mouth dropping wide open.

 **"I am the Heavenly Dragon known as Ddraig. More formally, the Red Dragon Emperor."**

Out of pure instinct, Issei found himself taking several steps back across the flame-filled void as he gaped in utter awe of the beast before him.

"Ddraig... one of the Heavenly Dragons... appearing to me..!" Issei murmured, only half-aware he was doing so."

 **"Naturally, given that you are my host."**

If Issei had been shocked before, he was almost beyond comprehending the dragon's words now.

"H-H-Host... Host of the Red Dragon Emperor..."

He was faintly aware of the Red Dragon Emperor giving a deep, reverberating laugh. **"Indeed, Issei Hyoudou. You should be thankful for that. I am the only reason you still draw breath on this side of Heaven."**

 _That_ snapped Issei out of his daze. "Wait, what? What do you mean?"

Ddraig snorted. **"I'll let you in on a secret, Issei Hyoudou: Gabriel would probably have let you die on the pavement had I not spoken up. She reincarnated you because of me."**

Issei didn't reply, caught between refusing to believe it and realizing that Ddraig's words explained _a lot_. Evidently, however, his face communicated everything Ddraig needed to know.

 **"What, you don't believe me? Despite what you may have heard, Angels are fully capable of working on the basis of simple pragmatism."**

Issei's fists clenched. "Then what does that mean for me?"

Ddraig snorted again, the dragon's crimson-scaled face staring straight through him. **"It's** **cliché, Issei, but this** **cha** **nges only what you let it change. You're still Gabriel's Jack, and you're still an Angel, whatever I might think of your King."**

Issei opened his mouth to reply, but Ddraig cut him off. **"I'd rather continue this conversation in the real world, Issei."**

* * *

Issei snapped awake, his clothes drenched with sweat.

 _What the hell...?_

"Weird..." he muttered, his mind still vividly recalling the bizarre dream. "What kind of dream was-"

 **"The kind that wasn't just a dream."**

Issei's torso snapped upward. "What the hell was-"

This time, however, Issei stopped himself short. He was too busy staring at his left arm. Or rather, the area where he thought his left arm should be.

The familiar skin had been replaced by a gauntlet, bright red with spots of green and gold.

 **"This, Issei, is the reason you possess an Angel's wings."**

Issei was speechless, totally lost for words in what was becoming a frustratingly common occurrence. Luckily, the voice filled in for him.

 **"The gauntlet is the manifestation of the Longinus known as 'Boosted Gear'. When activated, the user's power is doubled every ten seconds."**

"I'm... no way... I'm the host of... I can't be..."

 **"Why a** **m I getting** **déjà vu right now?"**

"Sorry! Stuff like this just keeps happening to me!"

The baritone voice sighed. **"Back on topic, please..."**

Trying and only partly succeeding in swallowing his total astonishment at the manifestation of the Longinus, Issei tried and failed to keep his next words steady.

"Why... why did you never try to talk with me before? It's been a week..."

 **"I felt I should give you some time alone to adjust to the idea that you are now an Angel. I did not want to shock you even more than you already were. "**

Issei's teeth clenched, his shock fading into extreme irritation. "Yeah, because making me have nightmares isn't going to freak me out at all."

 **"Being snippy with me will get you nowhere."**

Issei sighed, before he asked the next obvious question.

"How does the Boosted Gear work, exactly?"

The voice gave an amused chuckle. **"Like this.** _ **BOOST!"**_

The Jack of Hearts felt a sudden wellspring of power flow through the gauntlet, even though he had no idea _how_ he could feel it.

Ten seconds later, it happened again. _**"BOOST!"**_

 **"Then, of course,"** the voice continued, **"You have to** _ **use**_ **this power. It's no good to just boost up. You must put it** _ **towards**_ **something in order for it to not be a massive waste of time and energy."**

" _How_ exactly would I do that?"

 **"I shall explain only two methods to you for now. The others are far beyond your capability at this point. No offense meant."**

"None taken," Issei said, though his voice was still thick with frustration that the voice proceeded to completely ignore.

 **"Well then,** _ **TRANSFER!**_ **"**

The brown-haired teen blinked for a moment before he realized he could read the book titles on the shelf opposite the enormous room.

"...the _hell_?"

 **"The power that has built up within the Boosted Gear has been transferred to your eyes."**

"So... my eyesight's four times stronger now?"

He could hear a sigh, as though he was a toddler being lectured by a scolding parent. **"Not exactly. Didn't you learn that no conversion of energy is perfectly efficient? It applies here."**

Issei groaned. "I sucked at science, okay?"

 **"It might have helped to pay attention to the lessons instead of imagining a woman's breasts in your mouth."**

"Shut up," Issei muttered, the voice completely ignoring him.

 **"If you're wondering, the effect doesn't last too long. Transfer is most useful for single-stroke things, such as strengthening your arm for the swing of a sword, just to name an example."**

Sure enough, within a minute Issei's eyesight had returned to normal.

 **"Secondly, there is Explosion, which is essentially the reverse of Transfer - it simply grants an overall strength and power boost to your entire body. Wait a few moments and I shall demonstrate. _BOOST_!"**

"Do you _need_ to shout "Boost" every time it happens?"

 **"No. It's just fun to shout."**

Issei sighed at that. _Great... I've got a dragon inside me and it's a fucking comedian..._

 **"BOOST!"**

Then, a moment later...

" **EXPLOSION!"**

Issei's body began to twitch at that word, his sore muscles feeling rejuvenated and revitalized, though he did not move otherwise. "Is it normal to feel like I could punch down a concrete wall after you do that?"

 **"Yes, though I wouldn't advise actually trying it."**

"I'll keep that in mind. So... Ddraig, right?"

 **"That is correct."**

Issei bit his lip. "Your power's cool and all, but... I gotta ask..."

 **"Ask away."**

"Did Gabriel _really_ turn me into an Angel just to have you as an ally?"

 **"She claims it was a bonus. I personally don't believe that at all. Call me a cynic, but she didn't take any action towards healing you until I threatened Heaven."**

"I'll keep that in mind," Issei said, his thoughts churning. "Thanks for the heads-up, Ddraig."

 **"My pleasure, but I have to cut this short. An Angel approaches as we speak and I've no desire to talk to them."** With that, the dragon sealed within Issei fell silent.

Sure enough, an Angel entered the room moments later, but it wasn't Gabriel. Rather, it was her Queen, and she was obviously irritated with him.

"Issei Hyoudou, sloth is as much a sin as lust. Get out of-"

She stopped short, however, when she saw the gauntlet covering his left arm, and proceeded to stare at it for several seconds, her eyes wide with surprise and awe.

And for once, Issei knew full well why she was shocked.

* * *

After regaining her composure, Griselda had had him dress and instructed him to wait in First Heaven's main gathering hall, rather than the one of the Hearts building; apparently, Gabriel would be calling for him soon and had asked that he mingle with the general population for a while.

 _Well, she's certainly taking her time..._

Issei had been seated at a table in the aforementioned hall for about twenty minutes, drawing the attention of every Angel in the place and desperately wishing he was back in bed. Given that he was in possession of the Boosted Gear and was unable to hide it, not to mention that he was Gabriel's newly-resurrected Jack, Issei being the center of attention was a frustrating inevitability.

The fact that Explosion's effect only lasted a couple of minutes and the soreness in his muscles was fast returning certainly didn't help his mood when dealing with the endless parade of Angels who came to ask about the gauntlet.

Most of the Angels who talked to him, though, despite making no secret of their interest in the Longinus, were far more intrigued by his lack of faith as a human. Their ultimate opinions were divided sharply down the middle; some were of Dulio's mindset of surprise but ultimately faith in him, while the other swung towards Griselda's more... dismissive thought.

"So you literally never went in a church the entire time you were human?" asked some Angel whose name he'd already forgotten.

Issei sighed, having answered this question about fifty times in the last quarter of an hour and already knowing this Angel's opinion just by his tone. "Not that I know of."

The Angel's reply fell into Griselda's line of thinking. "How are you going to be a Brave Saint, then? With no faith, what's the point? Might as well have become a Devil."

"One," Issei said, not even trying to keep annoyance and exasperation out of his voice, "I wasn't offered that option. Two, Lady Gabriel didn't ask you or me."

Issei was beyond caring at this point, and tuned out everything the Angel said afterwards and began thinking on random, unrelated topics. The brunette did this so effectively that he didn't notice the Angel had up and left until a new voice reached his ears. This voice, at least, was far more welcome.

"Morning, Issei!"

Issei's head turned, and a smile came over his face as Dulio approached, holding a bucket of fried chicken. Setting it down, Dulio slid into the seat across from Issei.

Popping a piece of chicken in his mouth, Dulio casually nodded at the gauntlet on Issei's left arm. "So, Boosted Gear, eh?" he said as he chewed the fried meat.

Issei nodded. "Got a rundown of how it works from Ddraig. Or the basics, at least. There's probably a lot more to this thing..." Issei flexed the fingers of the gauntlet thoughtfully.

Dulio nodded appreciatively. "No doubt. It wouldn't be a Longinus if there wasn't!"

Before Issei could get any deeper in conversation with Dulio, however, the entire hall fell silent, and Dulio sighed.

Moments later, every Angel in the hall dropped into a bow when Lady Gabriel entered.

"Please, carry on," her voice rang out clearly, causing every Angel to resume what they'd been doing previously.

Dulio gestured towards the Seraph now approaching them. "Think she's here for you, Issei."

Issei nodded. "Yeah, Griselda mentioned she was coming before. That's why I was out here. Hey, at least I can avoid answering the same questions another fifty times."

Dulio grinned. "Think positive, right?"

Issei returned the grin before looking towards Gabriel.

Unbeknownst to Issei, Gabriel did not miss the slight frown that crossed her Jack's face for a fraction of an instant.

* * *

"I see you've manifested the Boosted Gear, Issei," Gabriel said, speaking casually, as though dealing with Longinus-level artifacts was something she did every day.

 _Probably does, actually..._ Issei thought, his mind recalling Ddraig's earlier words and wondering when he'd get the opportunity to talk to Gabriel alone.

"That's quite the accomplishment; congratulations."

Issei felt a blush creep onto his features. "Err... thank you," he said, embarrassed.

His next words were a transparent attempt at changing the subject which Gabriel nevertheless indulged. "So, is Sunday a day off in Heaven?"

Gabriel nodded, a grin playing across her features. "Naturally, Issei. It's the Lord's Day, after all."

The grin vanished as quickly as it had appeared. "Now then, Issei, since you obviously have no other obligations today, I'd like you to see the mission of Heaven for yourself."

Issei's head tipped to one side. "What does that involve?"

The Seraph suddenly grabbed his hand. "This," she said curtly, before pulling him bodily against her in a soft hug.

Issei's mind told himself that he should not like the feeling of his King's body against his.

His body, meanwhile, adored it.

An instant later, the two had vanished into a cross of light, leaving Dulio alone at the table as he munched on fried chicken.

* * *

When the Seraph and her Jack emerged from the circle, they stood upon a balcony.

Above them was a beautiful blue sky, free of clouds. But it was what lay beneath the sky that drew Issei's attention and enraptured his gaze, his breath fleeing his lungs.

Beneath them lay an ethereally beautiful, impossibly vast city of equally impossible construction, both in material and architecture. Columns blended into gardens, flowers surrounded fountains, and buildings coexisted in perfect union with trees. It was simultaneously bizarre and utterly logical in every sense of each term.

The balcony upon which the Angels stood was itself yet another building in the city.

And among the plants and stone, _they_ were there. The people. Groups of every age, race, sex and view coexisted in perfect harmony. Talking, laughing, playing, and enjoying their eternity.

Issei was so captivated by the sight that he didn't even notice Gabriel laying her hand on his shoulder.

"Issei," she whispered in Issei's ear, "What do you believe this is?" She gestured to the city below.

Issei's response was slow and quiet, barely an exhale. "I'm guessing this is Third Heaven... the land of the souls of the dead who reside in Heaven..."

"Correct..." his King whispered back. "View it, understand it as best the living mind can, and come to an understanding within your own soul."

"About what?" Issei replied after a long hesitation.

"About the mission of Heaven," she breathed into his ear, her voice kind and encouraging.

Something clicked in Issei's mind, and it seemed so obvious in hindsight that Issei couldn't believe he hadn't made the connection immediately.

"Third Heaven is our mission, isn't it? We have to protect it. Protect the souls of the dead."

He felt Gabriel's hand squeeze his shoulder. "Precisely. Before the Angels are loyal to the church, to the Seraphs or to each other, they are loyal to the protection of Third Heaven and the souls who reside within."

Gabriel's hand released its grip on his flesh and she stepped forward, gesturing out over the impossible city. "From Lord Michael himself to you, the newest Saint, every Angel must be prepared to defend Third Heaven with their very beings, if necessary."

She didn't mention God; both Angels knew he was already dead, something Issei had had little reaction to learning; Gabriel had confessed to being relieved by this response.

Apparently the reaction of most believers was, at best, to break down crying.

"If ever you question why you train, why you fight, why you work to defend Heaven, think of this place," she encouraged. "Remember that the countless souls who reside here depend on you and all the Angels of Heaven to ensure their peace throughout eternity."

"I will," Issei replied instantly.

Gabriel gave an appreciative nod.

* * *

After this, the two continued to stand on the balcony, Gabriel insisting that he "take in the sight" and engrave it into his memory.

Issei, however, had already done that; rather, he stared blankly out into the city, considering what Ddraig had told him earlier.

Issei wanted so desperately wanted to know if it was true. The dragon's words made sense; loathe as he might have been to admit it, the brunette knew he had not been at all faithful prior to being reborn, nor did he possess any inherent skills or talents that would have been useful to Heaven besides the mostly-crimson gauntlet on his left arm. Griselda and Dulio were both having to take time out of their own duties to train him from square one, and according to one of the other Saints, the facility Griselda ran was scrambling just to ensure her work would not gone undone. His very presence had disrupted his fellow Saint's lives.

Yet there was another side that was desperately formulating any kind of excuse to not go through with it, to not ask. It was a desire formed not by logic or conscious reasoning, but simple fear, comparable to that of a small child who knows that they will be caught for whatever it was they did but wishes to prolong the inevitable anyway. Two voices, each voicing one of these thoughts, began to argue back and forth in his mind, his own conscious thoughts arguing with themselves.

 _You might as well ask now. You'll find out later either way._

 _What if she gets offended?_

 _Then you can get the answer and then patch things up with her as best you can._

 _What if she punishes you?_

 _Then I'll take it like a man. Seriously, I've died once. There's nothing she could possibly do that would be worse._

 _What if she tries to humiliate you?_

 _Been murdered already, not going to care even if she does._

 _What if she throws you out of Heaven for it?_

 _If she'd do that, she's not worth following to begin with. And Gabriel doesn't seem like the type of person to do that, anyway._

 _And Yuuma didn't seem like the sort of person who'd stick a spear through your gut. How'd that work out for you?_

"Issei?" Gabriel said, breaking through the haze of his thoughts. "Are you all right? You're trembling..."

Only then did Issei notice his twitching shoulders, and the fact that his hands were squeezing the balcony rail over which he was leaning slightly so hard that his knuckles had turned white.

"Issei?" Gabriel asked again as she laid a hand on his shoulder, concern flooding through her tone.

The slight squeeze she gave his shoulder was intended as a gesture of comfort.

For Issei, however, it was the proverbial tipping of the scale, and he slowly released his hands and brought himself upright.

He took a slow, deep breath, nerves rattling as he slowly turned to look at his King.

"Issei?" Gabriel asked for a third time.

One final breath, and Issei spilled his guts.

"Lady Gabriel, why did you save me? Why'd you take me as your Jack?"

She blinked, and for a moment she did not respond.

"Was it because of Ddraig?" Issei asked, his voice emotionless.

Gabriel closed her eyes as she laid both of her hands on his shoulders, sighing.

Another long, slow breath passed out of her lungs before she answered.

"Yes, Issei. It was because of Ddraig."

* * *

The confirmation did not shatter the brunette the way both he and his King had been afraid it would.

Instead, there was no emotion. No terror, no sadness, nothing. Instead, there was simple acceptance, devoid of any feeling.

"Well," Issei said, "I guess that makes sense... I wouldn't have been worth savi-"

" _No_ , Issei," Gabriel said, cutting him off. "Issei, to me, nearly everyone is worth saving."

He blinked. "Then why didn't you save me until Ddraig made you?"

Issei felt Gabriel's hands squeeze his shoulders once more, her eyes staring directly into his. "Issei, I did not attempt to save you before then because it would have likely caused problems in the future."

"How?"

Gabriel sighed. "Issei, realize that while I wish I could save nearly all the world's dying, there are very specific rules governing who may be saved. Unfortunately, when I first arrived, you did not meet those requirements."

Issei bit his lip, feeling slightly stung by those words. "What 'requirements' are you talking about?"

"What I refer to, Issei," the Seraph said, "is that death is a natural part of life, and the rules regarding our interventions are tightly written. Most of the time, Issei, we're forced to allow the soul to pass on. And it has nothing to do with faith; even the faithful must be allowed to die in most cases. If we prevented your death and not others without reason, it would set a _very_ poor precedent. The primary exception comes when the death of a person will likely cause danger to Heaven or to the church's well-being."

The brunette raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly would that work? I mean, it's not like the church would notice or care if I died."

Gabriel shook her head. "You're forgetting, Issei, about Ddraig's threat. Having the Red Dragon Emperor and all of his future hosts set against you for the rest of eternity is not a desirable outcome for _any_ faction, not just Heaven. If that gauntlet were to get into the hands of just one particularly powerful individual, the results could be catastrophic."

Issei swallowed once more. "So... if Ddraig hadn't said anything, you'd have wanted to save me, but you'd have let me die anyway?"

Gabriel shut her eyes, delaying her answer for a few moments. Then...

"Yes, Issei Hyoudou. I would have let you die there if Ddraig had remained quiet. And in saving you, I took your humanity and set you underneath heavy expectation. I apologize for both of these things, and if you wish to hate me... if you wish to fall and escape my service, I will accept that."

For a moment, there was silence between the two, and Gabriel was certain she was about to hear an explosion of anger from him.

What she did not expect was to hear a sigh and feel him shift.

When she opened her eyes, she saw Issei had half-turned, eyes cast over Third Heaven. "Nah, wasn't going to do that," he said, his tone casual. "I'll stick around. Just wanted to know for sure. Guess why you did it doesn't really matter - you still saved my life. Thank you for that, by the way. For saving me. I don't think I said that last week."

Gabriel let out a light sigh. Then, to Issei's surprise and slight chagrin, pulled him into another hug.

"L-Lady Gabriel!" Issei said, his face turning bright red as his wings likely began flickering. Gabriel just hugged him tighter, a smile on her face at hearing her Jack's intent to remain allied with Heaven.

"You're welcome, Issei."

* * *

As soon as they had concluded their business in Third Heaven, King and Jack both returned to First Heaven to drop the latter off; both agreed not to speak of what they had said on the balcony.

"Something I'd like you to do after training concludes each day, Issei," Gabriel said before departing, "Is to speak with Ddraig. I assume you're capable of that, given that you've manifested the Boosted Gear?"

Issei nodded.

"Get to know Ddraig as well as you can, and see if you can get him to instruct you in the basics of using the Boosted Gear. I admit, neither I nor anyone else in Heaven can truly help you with learning to use it; the only one who can is sealed within your arm."

"I will," Issei replied, failing to mention that he'd already gotten that explanation for fear of being assigned something else.

Gabriel gave an appreciative nod. "You also remember that we were attempting to arrange terms by which you might return to Kuoh, correct? I have good news – we've found that the two Devil King's only term is that they wish to meet you in person."

Issei swallowed, rather nervous at this development. His King, however, seemed to miss this.

"Sadly," Gabriel continued, "They will not be able to meet with us until next Sunday. Some event or another that neither can get away from. You'll have to spend this week with us as well."

Issei nodded again.

With that, Issei was left alone with Dulio in the gathering hall and the new worry over how he would handle his meeting with the Devil Kings.

For the sake of keeping himself calm, Issei immersed himself in small talk with Michael's Joker, who helped keep his "interrogators" away while they chatted.

* * *

The next week proceeded near-identically to how the previous one had – in the morning, he would spend a few hours doing "physical training" with the Queen of Hearts (which to Issei's mind would be more accurately termed "having the living shit beaten out of him"), followed by sword combat training with the same.

While not enjoying physical training one bit, Issei actually disliked sword combat training far more. Even as the days passed, physical training got slightly easier.

With sword combat, however, he was constantly reminded of just how far he had to go before he would even be considered "competent", and that was without getting into Griselda's attempts to "desensitize" him.

When he had demanded to know why she was forcing him to kill uncannily realistic magical dummies, who were capable of begging for their lives and bled profusely when a sword was shoved into their flesh, she'd acted as though it was blindingly obvious.

"In the service of Heaven, you may well find yourself on the battlefield and forced to kill those who might feign surrender. There must be no hesitance or mercy in your strikes or your actions. It is very rare that we take prisoners, Issei."

And as the days dragged by, it became easier and easier, and that sickened Issei more than anything else.

* * *

About one in the afternoon, he would switch over to Dulio, who taught him how to utilize his magic-related abilities.

As one might expect, Issei far preferred Dulio's company, both for his more relaxed demeanor and his seemingly infinite patience for Issei's many, many screw-ups.

It also helped that Issei found the subject matter Dulio taught him to be much more enjoyable. By the end of Saturday, Issei could make a few decent weapons from light magic.

Then, after dinner, Issei would relax and chat with Ddraig until he fell asleep, though after the first night, very little actual _training_ went on, for a simple reason that the Welsh Dragon had given him.

 **"Until you grow** _ **much**_ **stronger, there is little I can actually teach you beyond how to manifest the Boosted Gear at will..."**

That had taken all of fifteen minutes.

 _Heaven, I get it, I'm weak,_ Issei thought, exhausted and frustrated. _You don't need to remind me so much..._

 **"One other thing, Issei – you remember Boost, Explosion and Transfer, correct?"**

"Yeah, of course."

 **"There's a couple of details about those abilities that I didn't tell you before – one good and one bad. Which do you want to hear first?"**

Issei thought about this for a moment before settling on "Bad".

 **"The bad news is that those abilities only work as far as the host's body can handle the energy. I'll not mince words with you; in your current state, you would only be able to handle just over a dozen or so iterations of it before I would be forced to cut it off for your safety."**

Issei frowned at that. "So I've gotta get into way better shape, is that it?"

 **"It isn't anywhere near that simple, but it certainly will not hurt your ability to handle my energy in any way if you are more physically fit."**

Issei sighed. He was quickly getting the impression that _nothing_ about the Boosted Gear or Ddraig was simple.

"So what's the good news?"

 **"The good news is that Transfer isn't limited to your own body. You could transfer it to a fire in order to make it burn more fiercely. You could transfer it to a spell to make the spell more powerful. Are you beginning to understand?"**

Issei nodded. "So Boosted Gear's real strength is that it lets you be pretty creative with your battle tactics?"

Ddraig chuckled. **"Indeed."**

Every night after that, Ddraig had told him of abilities still far beyond his reach, such as the Balance Breaker and the awe-inspiring Juggernaut Drive – abilities Ddraig readily admitted that most of his prior hosts could never hope to unlock, and he put very little stock in Issei obtaining anytime soon. He told him of his rivalry with the Vanishing Dragon, Albion, and of the countless times they had clashed. He told Issei stories of his legendary exploits throughout thousands of years of battle, winning the admiration and fear of the entire supernatural world.

In exchange, Issei had relayed his life story, such that there was, earning near-constant smart remarks from the Red Dragon Emperor.

* * *

The week passed very quickly, each day one step closer to Issei meeting the Devil Kings. He received specific instruction from Dulio on how exactly to address them, how exactly to dress and how exactly to behave.

So it was Issei that stood in Zebel, in vestments very similar to the ones Dulio wore, somehow more frightened than when Raynare had tried to murder him. Even with both Lord Michael and Lady Gabriel standing by in the unlikely-at-best event that things got ugly, he was still racked with nervousness.

And at _precisely_ the appointed hour, two bright, red circles appeared, signaling the arrival of the two Devil Kings.

What Issei was surprised by, however, was who stepped out of the circles.

One was a tall man with a thick crop of red hair and one of the friendliest expressions Issei had ever seen, clothed in the regal, armor-like formal cloak of the Devil Kings.

The other was a woman, shorter than even Issei, whose gaze was much more suspicious, and who instead wore a simple green dress.

Immediately upon their entrance, Issei bowed deeply before making his greeting. "Greetings, Lord Sirzechs Lucifer, Lady Serafall Leviathan."

"Greetings," Sirzechs replied, his face showing a patient smile. "I take it that you are Issei Hyoudou, Lady Gabriel's newly-reincarnated Jack?"

"Yes, sir," Issei confirmed nervously as he rose.

Sirzechs chuckled. "You needn't be so nervous, Angel. I have neither seen nor heard any reason to deny your return to Kuoh."

Lady Serafall, naturally, chose this moment to interject. "Well, I have! It's a bit suspicious that my biggest rival just _happens_ to be sending one of her cards to the place where my cute little sister just _happens_ to be attending school!"

Lady Serafall began invading Issei's personal space, circling him and looking closely at random points on his body with no apparent method to her madness. Sirzechs simply sighed, obviously embarrassed by the antics of his fellow Devil King.

"Leviathan, we've been over this. The boy is fully aware of what violating the truce pact will mean for both sides. All he wants to do is get back home to his parents."

"Not to mention," Gabriel spoke up, "We aren't rivals in any way, shape or form beyond being leaders of opposite factions, Lady Leviathan."

"I refuse! He's not going back there!"

"That isn't your judgment to make anymore, Leviathan," Sirzechs stated flatly, his voice allowing just a hint of authority to creep into it. "The four Devil Kings took a vote. You were outvoted, your arguments failed to convince any of us to deadlock the decision – he is to be allowed to return."

Lady Leviathan gave an angry snort, but relented, albeit very obviously without wanting to. "Fine..." A heartbeat later, she re-positioned herself directly in front of Issei and began waggling a finger in his face. "But if you do _anything_ to my little sister, I will wipe you off the face of Earth, Heaven and Hell!"

Issei, to his tremendous credit, kept his face neutral. "I shall keep that in mind, Lady Leviathan."

Without even bothering to say good-bye, the sole female Devil King warped out.

Sirzechs sighed once more. "I apologize for my comrade's behavior. She has something of an... _obsessive_ love for her little sister."

Issei said nothing.

"Though, Issei Hyoudou, before you return to Kuoh, I have a request."

Issei blinked. "Yes, sir? What is it?"

"Please," Sirzechs said, his face entirely serious, "Try not to stir the pot too much, for both your own sake as well as the sake of our sisters and their peerages. Just go about your business as you would normally while fulfilling your obligations to Heaven and Lady Gabriel. Stay out of the way of the Devils in Kuoh and they'll more than likely stay out of yours."

Issei gave a simple assurance that he would do so, and Sirzechs smiled before bidding them farewell. But before he left, Sirzechs suddenly turned halfway.

"Oh, and Issei?"

"Yes, sir?" Issei replied, his voice stiff.

"Expect to get teased about that prayer in the future."

His smile looked quite a bit more mischievous as he vanished.

* * *

When Issei turned around, turning red in what was becoming an annoyingly common occurrence, both Michael and Gabriel were both wearing similar expressions to the Devil King. Issei blinked before the connection was made in his brain.

"They heard that prayer I made too, didn't they?"

Michael nodded, a rare chuckle escaping his throat, before he spoke. "Child, the Seraphs of Heaven heard it, the Devil Kings heard it, the Governor-General of the Fallen Angels heard it, from what he tells me... I would be very surprised if the Norse Gods and the valkyries of Valhalla didn't hear it."

Issei buried his face in his hands, suddenly filled with the desire to shrivel up and die.

"Issei, do you remember the schedule we discussed?" Gabriel asked, her tone suddenly very businesslike.

Issei nodded. "You wanted me here in Heaven for at least two hours each day and all day on Saturday?"

Gabriel nodded. "Although, I'm granting you this week off."

Issei's eyebrows raised. "What for?"

That same mischievous smile returned. "You'll probably need every hour you can squeeze out of the day to get caught up in school."

Issei's eye twitched.

"...is it too late to just stay in Heaven?" he asked, only partly joking.

Gabriel nodded, the Cheshire cat grin widening.

* * *

That night, Issei returned to Kuoh with Dulio, who helped gave his mother and father the distinct impression that the latter was a kind young priest who had taken him in for the two weeks he'd been gone. After that, Dulio had departed back to Heaven.

Issei felt horrible lying to his parents, but as fate would prove to often have it in his life, the truth simply wasn't an option.

* * *

 _And cut_.


	4. Shakeup of the Status Quo

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

When Issei Hyoudou didn't show up to school the day after his date, most of the class thought little of it; many were glad to have one day away from the rampaging pervert. The trio of peepers was reduced to a duo for a day, the girls of the Academy a were able to breathe a little easier, if only temporarily. Matsuda and Motohama, his fellow partners-in-peeping shrugged it off, believing their friend's absence to be due to illness or some other mundane explanation.

When Issei Hyoudou didn't show up to school two days in a row, the girls of Kuoh Academy could hardly believe their luck; a few were literally thanking God in the hallways, to the chagrin of a _few_ students in particular. Matsuda and Motohama, meanwhile, had begun to experience the first pangs of genuine worry as they realized he wasn't returning their calls.

When Issei Hyoudou didn't show up to school three days in a row, there was no longer an atmosphere of thankfulness from the girls, and Matsuda and Motohama were terrified for their friend's safety.

After all, they had _all_ walked by the missing posters that had been put up overnight.

Nearly every student had recognized the face of the person on them.

One of the girls of the Kendo club weakly tried midway through the day to lighten the mood among her friends. "Well... at least Hyoudou's not around to spy on us, right?"

All she received in reply were several looks that could have melted steel. The girls of the Kendo club may have hated Issei's guts for his lecherous antics, but that didn't mean they wished genuine, lasting harm upon him.

Matsuda and Motohama, on the other hand, suddenly cut off their perverted hijinks, too worried about their friend's life to care about peeping. They called Issei's phone number hundreds of times, not ever receiving anything but a voice mail. Calling his house achieved the same result. Going there themselves proved equally fruitless, as no one would answer the door, not even his parents.

Whether student or teacher, barely anyone in Kuoh Academy had a flicker of a clue as to what had happened to Issei Hyoudou.

There was, however, one group of students that proved an exception.

* * *

Rias Gremory had checked with Issei's teachers the very first day he was absent, and when she found out he had not been in class, her heart had sunk so far she was half-surprised her chest hadn't deformed.

That afternoon, at the Occult Research Club building, all three members of her peerage had quickly realized that something was wrong with their dear King. Akeno Himejima was the first to speak up.

"President? What's wrong?"

The red-haired Devil shook her head and offered a paper-thin smile that didn't fool her Queen for an instant. "I'm fine, Akeno."

Her Queen frowned. "President, please. We know what your fake smiles look like."

Rias offered an even weaker smile. "I'm fine, Akeno, really."

Sighing, Akeno sat down next to her King and placed a hand on her shoulder, while staring Rias in the face, her purple eyes just a few inches away. "President, it's our job to help you. Please, just tell us the truth. We _know_ you, President. We _know_ something's wrong. What is it?"

Rias Gremory's poor facade cracked at those words, and she buried her face in her hand.

"President?" Koneko Toujou, her Rook, asked hesitantly. "Does this have to do with..."

Rias nodded behind her hand. Pulling her hand away, the King appeared as though she'd just had a palette of bricks broken over her skull. "Issei Hyoudou was absent from all his classes today."

Her Rook shrugged. "So what? He's probably just sick or something. He'll be back soon enough."

The red-haired Devil's head gave a sad shake, eyes tightly shut. "Somehow, Koneko... I doubt it..."

The nekomata tipped her head to one side as she replied, "Why?"

Rias took a deep sigh, stood, and strode over to the window, staring out into the late afternoon sunlight. "Koneko, you know he went on a date with a Fallen Angel. Then the very next day, he's absent. You expect me to think that's a coincidence?"

"President," her Knight suddenly interjected, "Fallen Angels spy on humans and then go on their way all the time, no harm done. Why would this be any different?"

Rias turned her head towards the blonde Devil, then slowly shook her head.

"I can't explain it," she confessed. "What you say makes perfect sense, Kiba, but... I just can't believe it." Her eyes returned to the scenery out the window and she sighed once more. "I don't know why... but I just _know_ something's happened. I don't know _what_ exactly, but something _very_ bad has happened to Issei Hyoudou..."

Both Rias Gremory and her Evil Pieces would ultimately turn out to be wrong.

* * *

By the time two weeks had passed, the Evil Pieces in the service of Rias Gremory had been forced to accept her viewpoint. Issei had yet to reappear, and all signs pointed to him likely being dead.

Rias took no pleasure in being proven right; she would have much preferred the opposite. She would have much preferred that it turn out Issei really had been ill or some equally simple explanation.

Other than the disappearance of Issei Hyoudou, which had been continuously gnawing at her, nothing else about her life had changed. She still had a peerage to run, clients to work with, classes to attend, and the omnipresent problem of the much-despised thing known as _homework_.

It was just before the first class of the day, as she spoke with the Student Council President, that she saw her Knight come running towards her.

"Kiba!" she called as he approached. "What's going on?"

Her Knight didn't even bother to stop moving before he started speaking excitedly. "It's him! He's back!"

"Who?" Sona asked the Knight of the Gremory house. Rias, as one might expect, already knew the answer to that; her eyes went wide with shock.

"Issei Hyoudou!"

Rias and Sona's eyes met one another.

"Could he be...?" Rias said, her voice surprised.

Sona gave a shake of her head.

* * *

 _Hard to believe it's only been two weeks since I left... feels like forever..._

Issei cracked a half-grin, his mind trying to ignore the soreness in his muscles. It was quite nice to be back in school, _not_ being "physically trained" by the Queen of Hearts.

All around Issei, people were pointing fingers, whispering, staring. It didn't take a genius to figure out what the conversation was about.

 _Holy shit, Issei Hyoudou's back!_

The Jack of Hearts chuckled. _Well, better they gossip about that than about me staring at the girls while they're half-dressed... only took getting a spear stuck through my gut to wake me up..._

The grin vanished, replaced by gritted teeth and a furious shake of his head _. Don't think about that night... don't fucking think about it..._ Issei forced the thought out of his mind, crushing it under the weight of a new worry.

 _What am I going to do about all that work I missed...?_

Issei shook his head again. _Guess I'll have to figure that out when I get there..._

Issei entered his homeroom casually, as though he'd been present every day for the last two weeks. As soon as he walked in, however, the entire class seemed to freeze in place. While it certainly didn't escape Issei's detection, he pretended not to notice as he sauntered over to his desk, put his bag down, and began getting out his supplies.

This didn't last long, naturally.

"ISSEI!"

The target of the shout sighed as he quickly found himself surrounded by the other members of the "Perverted Trio".

"Dude, where the hell have you been?" Matsuda shouted.

"Are you okay? What happened to you?" Motohama yelled before Issei could respond to the first question.

This repeated itself several times over with the same question being phrased a dozen different ways before Issei finally spoke.

"Can I talk?"

Matsuda and Motohama stopped their shouting instantly and began listening intently, as though Issei was about to reveal the meaning of life to them.

 _Not that these two would care about it..._ Issei thought to himself.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you two, I've been gone a couple of weeks, I get it. Not that big of a deal, okay?"

Matsuda countered that statement instantly. "Issei, we called you God-knows-how-many times and you never once picked up! Where the hell have you been?"

Issei chuckled. "Going through some self-improvement, having a few paradigm shifts, that sort of thing."

"Well, now that that's over, I've got some new magazines that I picked up while you were gone!" Motohama exclaimed, sure that Issei would start begging to see them. The lecherous teen couldn't wait to see the expression on his friend's face as he showed him the latest hentai magazine he'd bought.

In truth, Issei would have quite liked to see just what his friend had to offer, but the higher part of his brain thought better of it.

Instead, Issei gave him a half-smile and a simple reply of "No thanks."

If the classroom had been quiet before, one could have used it as a simulation of deep-space flight after Issei said those words.

One of the three most perverted students Kuoh Academy had ever seen had just refused an offer of pornography.

Motohama, after unfreezing from the sheer shock, immediately raced over to his bag, yanked out the offending magazine, and thrust it into Issei's face, trying to elicit the reaction he expected from his perverted friend.

For his part, Issei's mind was flooded with curse words. One part of him wanted to look at the magazine. It wanted to yank it out of his friend's hands and take in every single image on the pages.

But after some hesitation, Issei took a deep breath. Then, looking at his old friend instead of the magazine, pressed one finger against the porn and pushed it away.

"Not interested, thanks," he said, voicing a blatant lie.

Matsuda and Motohama were promptly yanked away by about half a dozen girls as they swarmed around his desk, all shouting questions.

"Who are you and what have you done with Issei Hyoudou?!"

"Where were you the last two weeks?!"

"When did you stop liking porn?!"

"When did you start wearing a cross around your neck?!"

Issei buried his face in his palm, growing exasperated with the barrage of demanding words. "One at a time, please..."

Silence reigned the classroom once more.

"Alright," Issei sighed, pointing to one of the previously shouting schoolgirls at random. "You're up first."

"Okay..." she said, seemingly suffering from stage fright when put on the spot. "I... uh... where were you _really_ these last two weeks? Where were you staying?"

Issei chuckled. "Well, I suppose there's no harm in saying. I bolted off from my parent's house after we got into a fight, and like an idiot I wound up taking a bus out of town."

The story, as one would expect, was made of pure, unadulterated bullshit, but the girls hung on his every word.

"A pastor found me near one of the old Catholic churches and took me in. He opened my eyes a bit, you might say. Learned the teachings of Jesus from that pastor. God bless him."

There was a collective gasp from the assembled girls around his desk.

Issei pointed to another girl. "Your turn."

"Are you actually Issei Hyoudou? You sure as hell don't act like him!" she spouted, looking sure he was going to suddenly slide a peek underneath her skirt at any moment.

Issei rolled his eyes. "Oh no, my cover's been blown," he drawled in a tone dripping sarcasm. "You're right, I'm not him, I'm an alien wearing his flayed skin as a disguise. _Yes_ , I'm Issei Hyoudou. I did _just_ explain why I'm a bit different now."

"So you're not going to peep at us anymore?" came a hopeful question.

The brunette, as one would expect, would have quite liked to keep doing just that.

But Issei shook his head. "Never again. You have my word."

One could practically hear loud _thwacks_ from jaws hitting the floor. Before any of the girls could get another question out, however, another female voice rang into the room.

"Issei Hyoudou?"

Turning his head, Issei could see one Sona Sitri, Student Council President, standing in the doorway. "Yes? Can I help you?"

Sona nodded. "If you would, follow me please." She promptly turned and left, and after stuffing the cross into his shirt, Issei followed her, ignoring the entire class staring at him.

* * *

"Let me just get right to the point, Issei Hyoudou," Sona said in her usual stoic tone, her face betraying nothing. "Where have you been for two weeks? And don't feed me that line of raw sewage you gave the girls in there."

Issei stood before the Student Council President's desk, in the Student Council office. Around her stood several other members of the Student Council, while off to his right stood Rias Gremory and the other members of the Occult Research Club.

Issei was _very_ careful to keep a laser view on Sona.

The brown-haired teenager shrugged. "Why do you care where I've been?"

Sona stared him down before continuing, her voice never once changing from its flat, inflection-less tone. "I care because you have two weeks of unexcused classes to explain. If you do not, it will go straight to the school board. And you do not want that, believe me."

Issei chuckled, causing Sona's eyes to narrow. "Care to explain what you find so funny, Issei? Now, now, don't be shy, I could use a good laugh."

Issei's grinned. "Sona, if you want someone to be truthful, it's polite to return the favor, you know."

The Student Council President's eyes narrowed further. "What are you implying, Issei?"

Issei's smirk didn't waver for an instant. "I'm saying that you're... how did you put it? "Feeding me a line of raw sewage", was it?"

Sona huffed. "I have no idea what you mean. You have _severe_ truancy to explain, Issei."

Issei sighed for the second time in five minutes, the smirk leaving his face. "Sona, cut the crap. We both know this has nothing to do with my absences being unexcused or whatever."

The violet-eyed President shook her head. "On the contrary, Issei Hyoudou, that is _all_ this is about."

Issei pinched his nose, eyes shut. "Alright, Sona, since you won't come out with it, I will. I know what every last one of you are."

 _Now_ Sona's visage cracked. Her head instantly jumped to meet Rias', and their expressions were both a mixture of shock and fear. Every member of each of their peerages wore similar countenances.

Looking back at him, Sona's hand squeezed the desk until her knuckles turned white, and her next words were a low hiss. " _How do you know?_ "

Issei raised a hand in a gesture of appeasement. "Relax, all of you. I'm not gonna say a thing, I've gotta help keep that stuff secret, too." Issei folded his arms, his casual relaxation the complete opposite of every other person in the room. "If you want to know where I've been, though... well, I've gotta get something out of that deal."

Sona seemed to tense up even further at that, but she kept her voice under control with her reply. "What is it you want, then?"

Issei gave an appreciative nod. "I need you to excuse the last two weeks of absences and get me the assignments I missed."

Sona looked over at Rias, who gave an annoyed and simultaneously dismissive wave of her hand. "Done," she said, her voice laced with suspicion. "Now explain yourself."

Issei shook his head, his lips never once changing from the smirk they'd been locked in for quite a while. "Not right now. Send one of your servants to fetch me to the Occult Research Club building after school. We can talk there."

Sona started to protest, but the wailing of the school bell cut her off, and Issei winked at her. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a class to get to."

He could feel every Devil in the room glaring a multitude of tiny holes in him, but they let him leave.

* * *

Fortunately for Issei, Rias had fulfilled her end of the bargain and gotten him his make-up work.

 _Un_ fortunately for Issei, Rias had fulfilled her end of the bargain and gotten him his make-up work.

To say there was a lot of it would be roughly comparable to calling an atomic blast "noisy".

Issei sighed. _Looks like I won't be sleeping tonight. Or the rest of the week, for that matter._

The final bell of the day had just rung, and Issei didn't have to wait long for his escort.

"Issei Hyoudou?" called the unmistakable voice of Yuuto Kiba.

Without a word, Issei gathered up his mound of papers and followed the blonde Devil out.

* * *

When they arrived in the meeting room of the secluded Occult Research Club building, Rias and Sona were already there, their entire peerages present and accounted for.

Rias, behind the wooden desk, was staring him through his face. "Well, Issei? No need for formalities. Where have you been?"

Issei snorted. "Rude."

The red-haired King's stare didn't change. "If you'd like, I can easily rescind our deal."

Issei shook his head, half a grin on his face. "Alright, calm down. I'll talk."

After a quick stretch, Issei sighed and came out with it. "I was in Heaven for the last two weeks."

For several seconds the room was silent as a crypt. And then Rias spoke, her voice beyond icy.

"When we made our deal, Issei Hyoudou, the understanding was that you would be telling us the _truth_. Perhaps I didn't make that clear enough for you?"

As soon as the words left her lips, _any_ humor was drained from Issei's face and demeanor as his arms slid to his sides. "Oh, my word isn't good enough for you?" Issei asked, his voice thoroughly annoyed. "How about this, then?"

With that, Issei revealed his wings and halo.

As soon as the white, feathered wings erupted from his back, there was a loud, collective gasp from the two Kings and their peerages.

For just a moment, he stared Rias Gremory in the face, before swinging his head from side to side, amused at the stupefied expressions on the faces of the Devils. None of them, evidently, had been in the room with an honest-to-God _A_ _ngel_ before.

After he returned his eyes to Rias, he spoke, his words measured and deliberate.

"I am a reincarnated Angel, granted new purpose in the service of the Great Seraphim Lady Gabriel." His words were no longer spoken with the casual, mostly-friendly tone they had come to expect of Issei Hyoudou; rather, they were full of power and a demand for respect.

Then, as suddenly as he had made them known, the teenager's wings and halo disappeared from sight. A few moments passed, the room dead silent once more, most of the Devil's mouths agape at what they had just seen.

Once those seconds passed, Issei turned around, went to the table, and began gathering his belongings.

"Wait!" Rias cried, her voice no longer hostile in the slightest. "Since when can Angels reincarnate humans? That-"

"No," Issei replied, his voice back to normal but still housing the prior annoyance from before he revealed his wings. "Our deal has been fulfilled, Rias."

With that, Issei Hyoudou left the building, leaving behind a swath of confounded Devils.

* * *

 _And cut._


	5. Unwinding the Coil

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei had been working on the enormous pile of make-up work for approximately an hour when it occurred to him that he hadn't handled the situation at school with much grace. While he could still feel pangs of annoyance at being accused of lying, in hindsight, there was little reason for him to have been as spiteful as he had been.

 _Well, guess all I can do tomorrow is try and start again with them... if they're willing to talk to me, that is..._

 **"Be fair to yourself, Issei,"** Ddraig suddenly interjected. **"** _ **They**_ **were the ones who got confrontational with** _ **you**_ **."**

"I know," Issei replied. "But I sure as hell didn't make the situation any better by being a smartass. I can at least apologize to Sona..."

 **"You owe them nothing, not even an apology."** Ddraig said firmly.

His host ignored this, and Ddraig did not speak again for the remainder of the evening.

It rather amazed Issei just how much time his newfound inner tranquility bought him. Without the constant, overwhelming desire to search up porn or read his magazines (though he would have very much liked to anyway), he made a significant dent in his schoolwork – albeit at the cost of his entire evening.

Calling it quits around ten in the evening, Issei looked at the remaining stack and allowed himself a smile.

 _If I keep this up, I could have it all done in three days..._

Issei sighed happily at that. He would rather have spent the evening doing almost anything else; somehow even sword training was more enjoyable than doing homework.

After undressing, Issei went to bed and fell asleep almost immediately, not bothering to converse with Ddraig any further.

* * *

At that moment, in the underworld, a certain brother and sister were having... something of an argument.

"So you let that Angel into my territory without bothering to ask me how _I_ felt about it?" Rias demanded, her tone annoyed.

"Yes," Sirzechs replied, his voice not that of an older brother, but of an authority who demanded instant, willing obedience. "If we'd consulted _you_ , Rias, Heaven would never have allowed the deal to go through, regardless of how the Angel himself felt about it, because you probably would've demanded something in exchange, rather than allowing it to be a simple display of friendliness."

"But-" Rias tried, attempting to get a word in edgewise, only to wither under her brother's gaze.

"If _you_ had been negotiating, Rias, the only result would have been a broken family and a very angry Saint. Your own words prove that much."

Rias blinked, genuinely hurt by her brother's cutting reply but refusing to show it. "I still think there was better way."

"If anything," Sirzechs replied, his tone steadily easing back to the familiar inflections of an older brother scolding their younger sibling, "He has more right to that territory than you do, Rias. He's lived there much longer and grew up there, whereas you only arrived on the scene fairly recently."

"Who cares?" Rias shot back. "He was human then. That's not the case anymore."

Rias regretted those words as soon as she saw the look in her brother's eyes shift.

His tone even harder than prior, he gave a cold response. "Rias, I may be your brother, and I deeply love you, but I will not argue this any further. You _will_ accept our decision, and you _will_ stay out of his way as long as he stays out of yours. Do I make myself clear?"

Rias scowled, but she nodded. "I understand. If the Devil King Lucifer orders it, I must comply. I _will_ , however, be keeping an eye on him."

Her brother's face relaxed as he nodded in kind. "If you feel that's necessary, Rias, then so be it. If he moves against yourself, Sona or either of your peerages, then I will happily deal with him myself."

* * *

In another part of the Underworld, another conversation between a Devil King and their sibling had happened about an hour earlier. The roles, however, were completely reversed.

"How can you be okay with that Angel hanging around Kuoh, Sona?!" Serafall shrieked. "What if he tries to hurt you? What if he tries to kill your clients? What if he-"

Sona sighed, not particularly surprised by her older sister's reaction. "There's no reason to think he'll do any of that. If he was going to, he never would have come to school and he definitely wouldn't reveal himself the way he did."

Serafall wasn't convinced. At all.

"He's a danger to your whole peerage! Why won't you listen to me?!"

 _Because you're unhealthily obsessed with your own sister to the point that it blanks out all logic_ , Sona thought dismissively as she covered her face with a palm.

"I'll let you know if he does anything to hurt me or my servants. In the meantime, _please_ don't attack Heaven just because you're aggravated..."

Sona proceeded to warp away to try and prevent her obsessed older sister from following her.

* * *

The next morning, as soon as he arrived at school, Issei kept his eyes open, searching for any of the members of the Student Council or the Occult Research Club. Despite Ddraig's words, Issei wished to apologize and try and get off on a better foot with both groups, if only for the sake of not leaving the Devils tense about his presence. Issei knew full well that if he couldn't, it was going to be a long couple of years for both sides.

It didn't take very long for him to pick out Tsubaki, who he knew to be a member of the Student Council, chatting casually with another female student outside one of the classrooms.

She swiftly noticed him, as well – at which point she turned and darted into her classroom, leaving Issei grinding his teeth in annoyance.

 **"This is pointless, Issei."**

 _Ddraig, not now..._ he thought back, though he was unsure if Ddraig could hear it. _Well, guess I'll just have to keep looking. Maybe it's just her..._

* * *

This game proceeded to repeat itself several times throughout the day, with Saji, Kiba and Koneko all making no secret of the fact they were avoiding him.

Not helping matters was the constant barrage of questions Issei was getting slammed with from every angle by the human students of the school. He could barely walk down a hallway without someone calling out "Where ya been, Hyoudou?" or "What happened to you, Issei?" or some other variation upon the exact same question.

It reminded him of the Angels in First Heaven, and the repetitive parade of demanding inquiries was only a touch less annoying.

Then of course, there were the rumors. Most notably...

"Bet you it was Kiba..." one of the girls whispered, blushing furiously under the misguided impression that Issei hadn't noticed. "He probably taught Issei how wrong his life was..."

"You think?" another shot back conspiratorially.

"What else could it have been?" came a third. "We saw Kiba come for Hyoudou yesterday, even. Kiba's so amazing... turned a pervert into a normal guy..."

Blushes came over all three of their cheeks as Issei buried his face in his hands.

"You know I can hear you, right?"

That just riled the trio of soon-to-be rumor mills even further. "Aww, look at that! Embarrassed that your secret's out, Hyoudou?"

"That's not what happ-"

"Hey!" One of the girls said to another passing gaggle of students, "Did you hear what happened between Hyoudou and Kiba?"

As soon as _that_ particular bit of gossip flared up, there was no stopping it; Issei would have had better luck trying to put out a wildfire with jet fuel. By the end of the next period, he and Kiba had apparently been screwing behind everybody's backs for months on end. It had probably mutated into something even worse by the end of the day.

 _Seems I'm doomed to be the school laughingstock forever... not sure what else I expected..._

* * *

Issei sighed as the last bell rang. The day had been long and incredibly irritating, from the rumors to the endless questioning to his utter inability to get one of the Devils to talk to him.

 _Well, at least there's not much extra homework for me to do..._

That was when he saw, out of the corner of his eye, a familiar figure passed.

The Jack's head whipped around towards the door just in time to catch a glimpse the Student Council President pass by the door, off to places unknown. Without hesitating, Issei jumped out of his chair and bolted after her.

"Sona!"

The black-haired Devil stopped as soon as he heard her name, but it took a second or two for her to turn around. When she did, her expression was somewhat guarded, and her words were the same way.

"What is it, Issei Hyoudou?"

"Well...err..." Issei said, stumbling over his words. "I'm uh... I'm sorry about yesterday."

Sona's head tipped to one side. "What do you mean?"

"I... uh... we didn't get off on the right foot..." Issei said, kicking himself over his lack of planning. Sona, however, raised a hand, cutting him off.

"On the contrary, Issei, you have nothing to apologize for. Both Rias and I were unjustifiably hostile with you. If it's not too much trouble, could you meet with the Devils of the Academy again? Perhaps we could start over?"

Issei shrugged. "Sure. When?"

Sona blinked, clearly not expecting the relaxed answer, though her tone did not waver. "Right now, potentially?"

Issei nodded, and Sona wordlessly instructed Issei to follow her.

* * *

"What did he want to discuss, Sona?"

All of the Evil Pieces under both Sona and Rias' command had gathered in the Occult Research Club building's meeting room at a frankly astonishing speed. Issei sat on one of the couches, across from Kiba and Koneko. Rias, on the other hand, sat behind her desk, a frown carved on her lovely features.

"Simply put, Rias, he and I both would like to try and foster tolerance between our groups," Sona explained flatly. "If he's going to be here anyway, we might as well try and get along."

"Start over?" Rias said, her tone somewhat questioning.

Sona nodded. "Apparently he thinks we ought to start from the beginning, without interrogation."

"Hmm... all right, then," Rias said, mildly interested. "Akeno, would you mind getting us all some tea?"

After Rias' Queen had served the tea, the Student Council President took a seat in one of the unoccupied chairs. She offered Issei a rare smile as she asked, "So, Issei, I suppose we can start off with the question everybody here has been asking themselves since yesterday. _How_ exactly did you become an Angel?"

Issei playfully rolled his eyes at that. "What happened to not interrogating me?"

Before Sona could answer, Issei felt a hand touch and begin to massage his shoulder, sending a pleasant shiver down his spine. Looking up, he saw Akeno Himejima's teasing grin.

"You might as well tell us right now, silly, because we'll all just ask later if you don't."

Issei blushed at this and her touch. He might have been an Angel, but he could still appreciate a woman's fi-

 _GAH! No, bad Issei! Focus!_

Turning away, the reincarnated Angel spilled the truth.

"Well, I was reincarnated as an Angel by Lady Gabriel. Didn't I tell you that yesterday?"

Sona shook her head. "You told us that, but you didn't tell us _how_. As Rias asked before, how exactly does that work? I wasn't aware Angels could reincarnate humans."

Issei sipped a bit of tea before answering. "Well, I'm what's called a 'Brave Saint'. We're resurrected in the service of another Angel at that Angel's discretion." His arms slipped behind his head. "And before you ask, yeah, it's a lot like the Evil Pieces system."

Sona's gave an appreciative hum. "How exactly does the Angel's equivalent work? What piece are you?"

The Angel's face turned into a half-grin. "Well, 'equivalent' and 'piece' aren't really the right words. See, where you guys are a chessboard, the Brave Saints are a deck of cards."

"So," Sona intuited, "each Brave Saint is a specific card value?"

Issei nodded, the grin getting wider. "Now you're getting it. Any Angel who commands Brave Saints is ranked as a King, just like a Devil with a peerage, and that Angel commands one of every card from Queen to Ace."

Surprisingly, Genshirou Saji was the next one to speak up. "This might seem like a dumb question, Issei, but do the Saints have a suit for their cards?"

Issei shrugged. "I know the Seraphim each have a set suit – Lord Michael has Spades, Lady Gabriel has Hearts, Lord Raphael has Clubs and Lord Uriel has Diamonds. I'm not too sure about the other Angels who can use the system."

"So," Rias suddenly cut in, making every head in the room turn towards her. Her voice was flat, unchanging and revealing neither anger nor friendliness. "What card are you, then?"

"I'm ranked as Gabriel's Jack," Issei replied. "The Jack of Hearts."

For a moment, the club was quiet, and Issei took this as an opportunity to get out a question of his own.

"My turn. Why exactly were you guys avoiding me all day?"

Kiba took the question, his voice a formal tone. "I can't speak for anyone else, Issei, but I can say that _I_ was personally a bit... freaked out, after what happened yesterday. Being alone with an Angel runs counter to my instincts. Sorry about that."

Seemingly encouraged by Kiba's admittance, Koneko, Saji and Tsubaki voiced similar responses. Issei nodded at each one of them, though he didn't speak until they had all finished.

"Well, guys, put it this way – I don't want to fight with any of you."

Heads nodded all around the room.

Koneko was the next person to question him, in her usual, blunt manner. "So why did Gabriel pick _you_ , all of people? Shouldn't you have fallen by now?"

Issei shrugged. "Why'd she pick me? She decided I was the right person for the job. As for how I haven't fallen yet... well, reincarnation as an Angel has some... interesting effects on the mind, as it turns out."

Koneko didn't respond, realizing that he would just continue to blatantly evade her questions.

* * *

After several more rounds of back-and-forth questions, nearly everyone in the room had relaxed. Perhaps one or two people were still tense, but for the most part the Devils had realized he was fairly nice.

Once that had been accomplished, Issei stood, preparing to leave. "Well, it was good to talk to you guys, but I've got a ton of missed work I've gotta finish."

Just before he could get out the door, though, Rias called out to him, her voice having melted from its prior coldness into something resembling neutrality.

"Issei, would you be willing to do something for me?"

Issei turned and looked at her. "Depends what it is you want."

Rias gave a wave of her hand. "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to throw away your allegiances or anything. I'd just like for you to join the Occult Research Club."

"Why would you want me to do that?"

Rias shrugged. "Well, that way we can break the ice a bit further."

Issei chewed on this for a moment.

 _Well... put that way, maybe it's not such a bad idea..._

Issei, despite this thought, ultimately shook his head.

"No."

"I know it's a big question for an Angel to be associated with Devils, bu- Wait, what?" Rias had plowed on ahead, and it evidently took a few seconds for Issei's answer of point-blank refusal to sink in.

When it did, Rias' lips turned downwards in a frown. "Why not?

Issei's pair of white wings and halo suddenly became visible, the red "J" glowing on the back of his hand. "I'm an Angel. I'm not part of your peerage, and I'm not your servant. More to the point, Rias, your brother asked me to stay out of you guy's business. The only reason I came here and answered some of your questions was to defuse any hostilities before they start. Beyond that, there's no reason for us to get involved with each other."

The brunette's eyes flicked over to Sona. "And if you were going to ask, no. I won't join the Student Council, either."

Rias took a deep breath, remaining silent for a few moments before responding. "If that's your answer, Issei, so be it."

The brunette second-year simply nodded, hid his wings again, and departed.

* * *

"Let me guess," Akeno said after the Jack left, "You wanted him in the club to keep an eye on him?"

Rias nodded. "We don't know for sure if he's really here for what he claims. It could be something a bit more nefarious..."

"Or," Sona cut in, her voice its usual deadpan, "You're simply being paranoid, Rias."

Rias sighed. "Maybe, Sona, but that's not a risk I want to take."

* * *

Issei managed to surprise himself once more the next night when he managed to complete the rest of the work, once again by spending his entire evening on it. Looking at the massive pile of work, he felt a trickle of satisfaction run through him.

Ddraig promptly proceeded to ruin it, naturally.

 **"Was shooting down that offer a good idea, Issei?"**

Issei shook his head, annoyed. "Is this a trick question? You heard Sirzechs. He said to stay out of there way as long as they stayed out of mine."

 **"Yes, but there's no reason to be hostile to the idea of friendliness. As long as you're not stopping their work as Devils, are you really in their way?"**

"Listen, Ddraig," Issei replied, his voice tired, "I just want to get through the last couple of years of school with as little hassle as I can, okay? Joining that club would've just complicated things. I've got enough to worry about already."

 **"Your judgment was too knee-jerk, if you ask me."**

"I didn't," Issei shot back.

 **"So be it,** _ **partner**_ **."**

Issei sighed. "Ddraig, can I ask you something?"

 **"You can** _ **ask**_ **whatever you like of me. Whether or not I choose to answer is a different matter entirely."**

Issei frowned at that, and stayed silent for several seconds before finally letting the question out.

"Ddraig, why'd you talk Lady Gabriel into resurrecting me?"

Ddraig was silent for a long while at that question, but just as Issei was about to give up waiting, the Red Dragon Emperor gave his reply.

 **"I felt you deserved another chance at life."**

Issei's eyes turned downcast at that, and his voice was low for his next question.

"Do you regret it?"

Ddraig's response this time, however, was neither delayed nor what his host expected.

 **"Not for an instant."**

Issei blinked back a tear at that.

"But... why not? You're forced to serve the Heaven that took your body away, stuck inside a weak host, and-"

 **"Stop** _ **criticizing**_ **yourself, Issei!"**

Issei jumped, taken completely aback at Ddraig's sudden forcefulness.

 **"Yes, you are weak, naive, foolish, idealistic and prone to snap judgment. I won't deny those things. Yet you possess a kinder soul than most know and are in a position to grow in strength, possibly more so than any host I've yet had. But if you constantly kick yourself, beat yourself down and tell yourself how weak you are, you will** _ **never**_ **improve. Your words will become a self-fulfilling prophecy, and you will** _ **remain**_ **weak."**

Tears sprung from Issei's face at the dragon's words.

 **"You are Gabriel's Jack, are you not? Whatever her reasons for making you such were, you are in her service for the foreseeable future. You know as well as I do that many of Heaven's Angels doubt you. They don't believe you could possibly serve as a Saint because of your past.** _ **Prove them wrong**_ **. Make them regret ever doubting you. Become the Saint that all of Heaven is proud to call its ally. Make the Angels on the battlefield say "Thank God! The Jack of Hearts is here!" Do I make myself clear to you?"**

Issei nodded, feeling the embers of confidence within him glow a little bit brighter at Ddraig's words.

"I will, Ddraig. I will."

Issei settled into bed, and fell asleep as he replayed Ddraig's words in his mind.

* * *

 _And cut._


	6. Not the Best Move

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

When he awoke on Thursday morning, Issei briefly considered trying to skip school, his body still incredibly sore from the "catch-up" Griselda had put him through.

As one might expect, however, Issei entertained the notion for no more than a few moments before reluctantly dragging himself from the comfort of his sheets.

The teen went through the motions of his morning routine like a programmed machine, his mind distracted by exhaustion. He didn't remember changing into his school uniform or when he finished packing his homework away. He barely tasted his breakfast, and didn't remember anything that he said or ate during the same meal within five minutes of it finishing. He didn't even recall saying good-bye to his mother and father.

On his way to school, however, he came across something he'd recall to the end of his days.

* * *

About halfway to school, within the throng of people traveling to their respective daily grinds there was a girl in a nun's habit. She was desperately asking for directions from the passersby, who seemed to be ignoring her or giving her strange looks.

The brunette teen carefully made his way through the crowd, getting within a few feet before addressing the lost girl. "Hey, do you need help?"

She evidently understood him, as she immediately spun around, eyes wide. "Oh, thank God! Someone who understands me!" Shortly after, she noticed the crucifix hanging around his neck, identical to the one printed on her habit. "And one of the church! Thank you, Lord!"

Issei nodded, somewhat embarrassed, not bringing up the fact he'd never read the Bible or attended church in his life.

 _Guess she's speaking a different language... that must be why no one can understand her..._

Issei had found this attribute of being an Angel to be a slightly double-edged sword. It was certainly nice to be able to speak to everyone in the world, but it meant that he'd had to start fudging his foreign language classes, too.

"Yeah, so uh... what are you trying to find?"

The girl's hands clasped in front of her, she looked down at the pavement as her next words left her. "Umm... do... do you know where I can find the church in this town? I know it's stupid, but... the church sent me here and I don't know the language very well..."

Issei didn't need to rack his brain for once, because he already knew exactly where she was trying to go.

"Yeah, I know where the church is – helps that there's only one." Issei pulled out his phone and checked the clock. "I've got just enough time to show you how to get there, but we'll have to walk fast."

The nun nodded and agreed with no argument. A few moments later, the brunette and the nun had vanished from the crowd.

* * *

"So, what's your name?" Issei asked, trying to make conversation through the quick strides.

"I'm Asia," the nun replied happily. "Asia Argento."

Issei nodded, a half-smile coming across his face. "Good to meet you, Asia. Issei Hyoudou."

"Thank God you appeared to guide me... I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come along... you're like an Angel sent by the Lord himself!"

Issei couldn't help but widen his grin at the girl's words; she had no idea how close to the truth she really was.

Then, however, a realization came crashing down on him, and the grin disappeared.

 _She doesn't know... I can't tell her, she doesn't deserve to have her faith broken that way..._

As life so often had it, telling the truth simply wasn't an option.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, however, a sound all humans understood reached his ears – that of a child crying.

Looking to his side, Issei saw the source – a boy, no older than eight, sat next to a tree, his arm scratched up and tears streaming down his face.

Before Issei could do anything, however, Asia had already darted over to the boy.

"Now, now..." Asia whispered kindly to the young boy, "There's no need to cry. Let me see if I can't fix this..."

The boy clearly didn't comprehend what she was saying. What he did comprehend was the green glow that erupted from the nun's palms, sending both his and Issei's eyes flaring open.

Seconds later, the boy's skin was smooth, the minor wound healed completely.

The boy gave sat frozen for a moment before he thanked her, though Asia could not understand his words.

The person who came along looking for the boy, however, was not so grateful.

"Yoshi, where did you go?" she scolded the boy worriedly.

"Oh!" the boy said happily, pointing at Asia. "I got myself scratched, but that girl fixed me right up!"

His older sister stared at the nun for a moment. "You should know better than to talk to strange people!" she scolded the boy further, glaring at Asia, whose face fell at the look.

"Hey!" Issei snapped. "She just helped your little brother! You -"

Issei was cut off by Asia. "It's... it's fine, Issei... please don't make a fuss..."

The girl sneered at both of them before yanking her brother around and walking away, looking as though she had stepped in something filthy.

Issei looked at Asia. "Did you... understand any of what they said?"

Asia shook her head. "Like I said, I don't know the language... but I know those eyes..."

Issei wanted to ask her more. He wanted to know the truth behind this obviously painful subject. But he did not prod her.

Instead, he simply made mention of something more innocuous. "Well, if it makes anything better, _he_ said thank you."

Asia gave a slight smile at that, at least.

* * *

A few minutes later, they arrived at the old church.

Issei turned to her and offered her a grin. "Well, Asia, here we are," he said, pointing up at the ancient building. "You can take it from here, I guess?"

Asia nodded, her face happy. "If you'd like, I can put on some tea!"

Issei shook his head. "I'm sorry, Asia, but I just don't have time. I've gotta get to school."

Asia didn't change expression. "It's okay, I understand. But... would you be willing to come visit me sometime?"

Issei assured her he would, but before he departed, one last question exited his lips.

"By the way, Asia, what was that? That thing you used to heal that kid."

Asia looked up at him. "It's a special power," she said, her hands clasping together as though she was about to pray. "One granted to me by God himself. I can use it to heal anyone."

Issei gave her a smile. "Quite a power... hope you work miracles with it, Asia."

Issei turned and left, missing the tear that slid down Asia's face at those words.

* * *

The brunette had promised Asia he'd visit her, but he knew even as the words left his lips they were a lie.

 _What the hell... I'm an Angel, I should feel most at home in a church... that's what Dulio and Griselda said... so what was that about?_

As soon as he had drawn near the church, Issei had felt a horrific sensation all over, one he was barely able to keep himself from cringing at – as though he'd been about to walk barefoot into Hell.

 _What's going on in there...?_

Almost immediately, Issei had regretted taking Asia there.

 _Nothing I can do about it now... why don't I ever think this stuff through?!_

* * *

 _And cut._


	7. Dark Wings, Dark Work

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

As soon as he arrived in First Heaven's main Gathering Hall that afternoon, he spotted Griselda seated at one of the tables, speaking with another Angel he didn't recognize. When she noticed him, however, she dismissed the Angel and waved him over.

"Good afternoon, Issei," she casually greeted him as he took a seat. "How are you?"

Issei cracked his knuckles. "I'm fine. Yourself?"

"Fine, thank you."

Resting his head in his hand, Issei cracked a slight grin. "What, going easy on me today?"

Griselda's face twisted into an excellent imitation of Gabriel's mischievous grin. "Perhaps my intention is to make you feel at ease to make the training that much worse."

Issei chortled slightly. "That would be just like you. But seriously, what's going on? Normally you'd have me pushing Heaven down to Hell by now."

Griselda leaned back, her relaxed demeanor a sharp contrast to its normal unflappably serious persona. "Dulio asked to have you to himself for the afternoon and tomorrow. He thinks I have been monopolizing you for the last few days."

Issei gave her a sarcastic look. "He _thinks_?"

"Well," Griselda admitted, "More like "states as iron-clad fact", but I _am_ trying to be polite."

Griselda's focus suddenly switched. "So, Issei, I have been meaning to ask but it kept slipping my mind – how have things been in Kuoh for you?"

The humor on Issei's face disappeared, replaced by a contemplative expression.

"Issei?"

Issei shrugged. "Depends what you mean. On the one hand, after we got to know each other, the Devils have been pretty relaxed with me. On the other, our relationship's pretty... distant, if you get what I mean. I'm trying to keep as far out of their business as possible so they'll keep out of mine."

Griselda's nodded at this.

The Jack nodded, before something occurred to him.

"Griselda? Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," she replied.

"Is... uh..." Issei said, trying not to stumble over his words, "Is there any reason I wouldn't feel welcome near a church?"

Griselda raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Issei bit his lip. "Well... there's this old church in my town... when I got near it, I felt horrible. And I don't mean awkward or nervous, I mean I literally felt like I was going to throw up right then and there. The place just felt... evil..."

Griselda's eyes widened. "What?" She shook her head. "There are only one or two reasons that you might have felt that way." The Queen of Hearts rested her fist against her mouth. "Hmm... are there any Fallen Angels in your town? Do you know?"

Issei's teeth clenched. "There _was_ one, at least. Don't know if she's still there."

Griselda nodded. "Do you know who this Fallen Angel was?"

Issei shook his head. "I only know the name she gave me, which probably wasn't real. "Yuuma Amano", I think it was."

Griselda drummed her fingers on the table. "When did you last see this Fallen Angel?"

Her succeeding card's face darkened. "When she rammed a spear through my gut..."

"I see," Griselda sighed. "I think that that Fallen Angel may be using that church as a base." She raised her hand. "Do not make any moves against the church until you confirm one way or another."

"I can't do that!" Issei suddenly snapped, leaving Griselda surprised. "A couple of days ago, I brought a lost nun to that church! I thought I was just being paranoid, but-"

Griselda shook her head. "My stance does not change. If you cannot confirm she is in danger, moving against the church is not advisable."

* * *

Issei had hoped Dulio would see his side and agree, but when he arrived, the Joker sided with Griselda.

"The lady's right. If that church isn't actually a base and is in use by the faithful, getting involved is a bad idea."

"Dulio, you're not helping," Issei said, frustration coming through quite strongly.

The young man shrugged. "Not my job to do that, Issei. My job's to defend Heaven's levels and the church." A grin split his features. "Now, I think it's time we catch up on your magic training, don't you?"

Issei's face was downcast. "Fine, let's go."

* * *

Never let it be said that the Brave Saints couldn't see what was directly in front of their noses. Both Griselda and Dulio could tell that their junior Saint was distracted during that day's training session, the next one and the one after that, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why.

"He's still worried about that nun..." Dulio had said to Griselda after Issei left Saturday afternoon.

"Little we can do about it," the Queen had replied. "All we can realistically do is hope _he_ refrains from doing anything rash."

Dulio raised an eyebrow at that. "Him? Maybe you haven't noticed, but he hasn't quite internalized the virtue of temperance."

"Glass houses," Griselda responded, her voice deadpan.

Michael's Joker just chuckled at that.

* * *

Issei slept fitfully Saturday night, his rest plagued by nightmares of black, feathered wings and bloodied corpses. He awoke several times in cold sweats, until around five in the morning he simply could not get back to sleep again, not that he really wanted to.

After his awful night, the teenager was not in much of a mood to do anything, and spent most of the morning reading or playing video games. Only in the afternoon did he venture out, towards the church.

 _I've gotta check on Asia... Please be okay..._

He didn't bother praying, but if he had, he might have thought his prayers had been answered.

* * *

Issei was walking near the mall he had to pass to reach the church when he heard the voice call out to him.

"Issei!"

His head whipped around. There, seated on a park bench like it was the most normal thing in the world, was the person he sought to find.

"Asia!"

The poor nun suddenly found herself being crushed in a tight hug, only able to get out a muffled greeting.

"Asia..." Issei mumbled. "Thank God..."

More muffled words escaped her, and Issei let go, suddenly feeling self-conscious at his own display of extreme affection.

"So..." Issei said awkwardly, not having thought beyond the embrace, "How have things been with you?"

"Err... fine, Issei..." the nun replied, her voice still laced with surprise.

 _Good going, idiot. Care to make her feel even more awkward?_

"Great..." The teenager desperately racked his brain, trying to find a way to make the conversation into more than hesitant stuttering.

That was when he remembered the nearby mall, and lacking anything else, the Jack pounced on it.

"Hey, Asia? Have you ever been in a mall?"

Asia shook her had, her eyes turning to the pavement. "No... I don't have any money, and even if I did, I don't speak the language..."

Issei shrugged. "Well, I'm here now. Want to find out what it's like?"

Asia's eyes leaped to him. "You... you mean it?"

Issei let a half-grin creep onto his face. "Of course! Let's go!"

Asia leaped off the bench and followed him towards the building.

* * *

The nun and Angel's next few hours were quite a pure bliss, indeed.

Issei had to explain exactly how to eat a hamburger to her, given that eating without utensils was a completely foreign concept to Asia. Once she had wrapped her head around the concept of eating with her hands and nothing else, she had quite enjoyed the greasy slab of beef on bread.

Her teenage companion hadn't minded dropping half his money winning a stuffed animal for her; the happiness in her eyes and on her face was more than worth the cash he had enriched the mall with.

Even when her nun's habit suddenly got not-so-voluntarily swapped for a cat girl outfit, she had (after overcoming her initial and completely understandable embarrassment) quite enjoyed taking photos with him in the photo booth, though she had very quickly begun to insist she get her clothes back.

As with everything in the world, however, it simply could not last forever.

* * *

"Today was fantastic, Issei!" Asia squealed happily as they sat on a secluded park bench, watching the setting sun.

Issei smiled at that. "Thanks, Asia. You have fun?"

Asia nodded, her face ecstatic.

Issei's grin widened as he took another bite of his second burger of the day. _Maybe I really was being paranoid... she's fine, after all..._

For a moment, the two were silent as they gazed upon the orange glow of the fading day.

Then, Asia broke the silence, her voice trembling.

"I-Issei?"

Issei turned, surprised not by her tone, but by her face; the young nun looked as though she was about to cry. "Yes?"

"I... I have a confession to make..."

Issei shrugged. "What is it?"

Asia was struggling to hold back tears as her next words left her lips. "I... I'm not actually part of the church anymore..."

Issei's eyebrows raised, but that was all. "So?"

Asia looked incredulous, but continued anyway. "I was... _excommunicated_..." she said, her voice emphasizing the last word as though it some secret so terrible that she thought he would leap back in fear and disgust.

The teenager's expression didn't change, nor did his response; only his tone varied, to one more quizzical. "So?"

"You're part of the church, shouldn't that matter to you?"

Issei shrugged. "No," Issei said nonchalantly. "I don't care about any of that. In or out of the church, Asia, you're still my friend."

"You... really mean it, Issei?"

"Of course," Issei replied easily, not quite grasping why the nun was reacting this way.

That was nothing compared to his confusion, however, when Asia suddenly began bawling and pressed her head against his side, her arms wrapping around his torso. After a moment, Issei responded in kind.

"Asia?" Issei said, worried at the sudden change in the young nun. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

For several seconds, Asia continued to let the tears soak his shirt, before pulling back to stare at him with eyes that were already turning puffy. "It's always been my dream to have friends, Issei! Thank you!"

It was Issei's turn to be incredulous. "You're telling me that you've never had _friends_ before?"

Asia shook her head. "I... I was raised in the church," she got out between sniffles. "I was eight when they found out I could heal people. After that... they... they made me a Saint..."

Her head found his shirt again, and when she retreated from the cloth, she wasn't even trying to hold back tears anymore. "Everyone treated me different after that... I was revered, but I was alone... I healed so many people but I never had real friends..."

The little arms on the nun squeezed tighter. "But now... I have you, Issei! Please, don't ever leave me!"

Issei tightened his grip as the nun once more hid herself in his shirt, and they remained that way for several minutes.

Once they finally pulled apart, Issei made only one comment to her. "Never, Asia."

Looking down at his lap, he realized that the burger had fallen onto the soil and been covered in dirt. Tossing Asia a sheepish grin, he picked up the fast food and walked over to a trash can about twenty feet away.

"Touching."

Issei froze solid, the food in his hands dropping to the ground.

 _That voice..._

The teen whipped around.

On the bench, next to Asia sat the Fallen Angel who had impaled him. She had one arm wrapped around the nun's shoulders, the Fallen Angel's chin casually resting on Asia's clavicle, a sadistic grin on her face.

Asia appeared as though the world had just crashed down around her.

"Well," the Fallen Angel said casually, "This is a surprise. You're still alive, huh?"

"What the hell do you want?" Issei snapped, a sword of light magic instinctively forming in his hand.

Raynare, however, wasn't even slightly fazed by this, and simply formed a spear in hers. It, however, did not point at Issei.

It pointed at Asia.

"Come near me with that and the nun loses her head."

"Raynare..." Asia said, terrified of Raynare and shocked at the sword that Issei had summoned. "Please, leave Issei alone!"

"Let her go or you die," Issei growled.

Raynare, however, was evidently aware of the fact that she held all the cards in the situation as she stood, roughly dragging Asia to her feet.

"Please, Issei..." Asia said weakly. "I'll go with her... forget about me, save yourself!"

"Asia, no!" Issei screamed.

"No, Issei," Raynare replied, choosing each word to hurt the Angel as much as possible, knowing he couldn't take any action against her thanks to her hostage. "Do as she says. Run away and I won't kill you."

Issei was trapped between a very, very hard rock and a very, very hard place, and could do nothing as Raynare squeezed Asia a little tighter.

"Come, Asia," she spoke soothingly into the nun's ear. "Let's get back to the church. After tonight's ritual, all your problems will end, after all..."

The spear, however, did not disappear, and Issei was utterly helpless to stop the Fallen Angel as she flew off with the nun he'd come to call a friend.

* * *

 _And cut._


	8. Blitzkrieg

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei stumbled into First Heaven's main gathering hall agitated and enraged, something that did not go unnoticed by those near the hall's entrance. After several heads turned, a voice called out, one Issei did not recognize.

"Well, well, well, the Jack returns!"

"Where's Griselda?" Issei called, not bothering with a greeting as he struggled mightily to keep his voice calm.

"What, not going to even say he-"

" _Where is she?_ " Issei let some edge into his tone. Judging by the way the seated Angel's expression changed, perhaps a bit _too_ much.

"What are you so-"

" _Where is she?!_ " Issei had stopped bothering to restrain his volume level, ignoring the fact that many more Angels were now staring at him.

The seated Angel raised their hands. "Alright, calm down..." he said, taken aback by the sudden fury pouring out of Gabriel's Jack. "She's in the Hearts building, said she didn't want to be bothered..."

Issei didn't spare a reply as he bolted back out of the hall, spread his wings, and took off towards the abode of Gabriel's Saints.

Once the Jack had run off, the atmosphere of the hall returned to one similar to how it had been before, but a question floated in the minds of many who were present. Only a few, however, bothered vocalizing it.

"Wonder what _he_ was so irritated about?" the Angel who had been snapped at commented to his fellows, who offered only shrugs in reply.

* * *

Within seconds, Issei's wings had propelled him to the building in which the Hearts deck was located, barely avoiding crashing into several other Angels in flight along the way. He yanked open the door and rushed in, tearing towards Griselda's door with as much speed as he'd ever squeezed from his legs.

After a minute or so that, to Issei, felt like an eternity, he arrived at Griselda's room. He didn't bother to even take a breath before he began pounding on the door like an angry gorilla.

A few seconds passed, each one crawling by in the way an hour does when one is staring directly at a clock. Then, the door opened.

Griselda's annoyed visage was normally something Issei feared. Yet he felt nothing except his fury towards Raynare guiding him at that moment.

"Did no one inform you I did not want to be disturbed, Issei?" Griselda questioned, the tranquility of her voice doing nothing to hide her irritation.

"I don't care, Griselda," Issei fired back, his voice defiant. "This is _really fucking important_."

Griselda pinched her nose and sighed. "Vulgarity..."

Issei's teeth clenched and his hands balled into fists. "Are you going to hear me out or not?"

The Queen of Heart's hand returned to her side, and she fixed him with a stony expression that he immediately returned. "Is this a matter of life and death?"

Issei's gaze grew harder. "It is, actually."

Griselda did not speak for a moment. Then, her hand moved, waving him into the room.

"That had better be the truth, Issei."

* * *

The door had not even closed fully before words began fleeing Issei's mouth.

"You wanted me to find out for sure if that Fallen Angel was using the church before I did anything? Well, I just did. Can I do something now?"

Griselda folded her arms. "Is this to do with the nun?"

Issei nodded grimly as his eyes studied the stone floor. "I spent a while with her today. Then I turn my back for five seconds, and that Fallen Angel has her. Put a spear to Asia's throat and threatened to kill her if she I didn't stay back... said something about a _ceremony_ tonight..."

If Issei's fingers had had untrimmed nails, his hands would have been running red with his own blood.

Griselda nodded, her face expressionless. "I doubt you could have done anything to help her, Issei."

"That's why I have to now," Issei replied after a moment, the brunette's voice a hoarse whisper. "I've gotta help Asia. That Fallen Angel's gonna kill her tonight, I know it!"

"Tell me, Issei," Griselda cut in, "Do you know anything about this church that you believe this Fallen Angel to be using?"

Issei shook his head.

"Do you have any idea if the Fallen Angel is working with anyone else?"

Once again, Issei admitted he did not know.

"Your plan, then, is to waltz into a church being used as a base by at least one Fallen Angel without any information and hope for the best?"

"It is," Issei snapped. "I'm not letting Asia go without a fight."

Griselda rolled her eyes. "Courageous, and also unbelievably stupid. I thought a few weeks with me would be enough to teach you _that_ much, at least."

"You're not gonna stop me."

Griselda sighed. "Your "plan" is tantamount to a suicidal charge, Issei."

"I don't care," Issei shot back through gritted teeth, painfully aware that the Queen of Hearts was probably right. "You can either help me or get out of my way."

The teenager sounded far braver than he felt. Yet his anger, towards both Raynare for taking Asia and himself for being helpless to stop her, refused to let him back down.

Griselda shook her head. "Issei, your obstinate mindset is both your best and worst quality." Another sigh escaped her before walked past him and moved towards the door. "I have to go find someone."

Issei's anger flared. "If you're going to get Gabriel, I'll be gone before you get back!"

The Queen's head turned to look at him as a grin crept across her lips. " _Lady_ Gabriel? No, actually, I was planning on seeking out Dulio. If anyone will help us, he will."

Issei had a reply planned. Yet it never left his lips; his mind was too busy shifting gears as it processed the word the Queen had used.

"Us?"

Griselda nodded, a slight chuckle escaping her. "I will be accompanying you, Issei. We will extract that young lady from the Fallen Angel's clutches within the hour."

The Queen of Hearts was unprepared for Issei's reaction.

"Issei..." Griselda said awkwardly as his arms squeezed her ribs, "I... appreciate the affection, but... please let go..."

* * *

Issei paced back and forth, checking the clock every few seconds.

 **"It's only been a few minutes, Issei."**

"Yeah, I know," Issei said to the dragon sealed in his arm, the Angel's voice frustrated and concerned. "But every second we wait, the more likely it is Asia's going to die before we get there!"

There was a sigh from the dragon. **"Noted, but any "Ceremony" this Fallen Angel has planned will likely take a large amount of time to set up. You should be fine."**

"Maybe you're right," Issei sighed. "But I'll admit it, Ddraig, I'm terrified. What if we're not fast enough? What if we can't save her?"

 **"Those sorts of thoughts will do nothing but put doubt in your mind, Issei. Think in terms of 'when', not 'if', at least with regards to things you can influence."**

"Easier said than done," Ddraig's host muttered.

 **"Undeniably true, but your mind will be the calmer for it."**

"Am I interrupting anything?"

Issei jumped at Dulio's voice suddenly entering the room. Spinning around, the brunette saw Michael's Joker leaning against the wall, his normally jovial face set in a frown.

"Well, Issei? Done talking with your soulmate?"

 **"If I weren't sealed up right now..."**

Dulio barely raised an eyebrow at that. "But you _are_ , Ddraig, so you're not going to do anything."

The Joker didn't seem the slightest bit surprised that the Red Dragon Emperor was speaking to him; Griselda, who was standing in the doorway, meanwhile, had her eyes wide enough that she wouldn't look out of place in a slapstick cartoon.

"Anyway," Dulio continued, waving his hand, "Issei, count me in on this little raid. Anyone raised in the church is a friend of mine."

Issei nodded, feeling a slight boost in his confidence at knowing that he at least had the support of two of the Brave Saints.

"Thanks, you two..."

Dulio shook his head. "Don't thank us yet. The Fallen Angels still have that nun."

Issei frowned. "Then what the hell are we waiting for?"

Dulio snorted. "Good question."

A moment later, all three Saints had vanished.

* * *

As soon as the three Saints appeared near the old church, they were all swamped by the same feeling Issei had been drenched by when he had brought Asia there.

"Yeah," Dulio said, his voice tense, "Fallen Angels, all right. With this kind of aura, there's probably more than one. Keep your eyes open."

The Joker's head turned to Issei, and pointed at the latter's left arm. "I'd start charging up right now. You never know when you might need it."

Issei nodded, mentally kicking himself for needing to be told that. "Boosted Gear."

The familiar gauntlet appeared, and an incantation of **"BOOST!"** was soon heard.

"Okay," Dulio continued. "Any idea where she might be?"

Issei shook his head. "Somewhere in or near this church. I don't have anything more specific than that, sorry."

Dulio shrugged. "Well, I guess we'll just have to check the old-fashioned way."

With that, Griselda walked up to the shut church doors and kicked them open.

As soon as the doors yawned open, the aura seemed to grow even thicker, as though the aura itself was a physical miasma enveloping the three Angels.

All three, however, ignored it as best they could, pushing forward into the church as the second incantation from Ddraig was heard.

"Somehow," Issei commented to his fellow Saints, "I don't think anyone's worshiping here."

The church had clearly not been used for _that_ purpose in a very long time. The old building's interior lay in decay; the old pews no soul had prayed in for years were coated by a thick layer of dust. The once-beautiful stained glass windows had become host to a layer of grime. A once-proud set of banners behind the pulpit now hung moth-eaten and neglected, the few books in the hall rotting away to oblivion. The entire building emitted a musty, rank scent.

"Oh, how wonderful! We have _guests_!"

Issei and Dulio exchanged looks of confusion at the obviously crazed sing-song that crashed against their ears.

Griselda, meanwhile, tensed. "Not _him_... not _here_..."

At that moment, a man stepped out from behind the pulpit.

He wore clothes that would mark him as a priest if he stood before a congregation rather than rows of empty pews, his head topped with a mop of silver hair. The man rolled his eyes around, tipping his head in a manner that left no doubts as to his sanity, and continued ranting as the third incantation was heard.

"Oh, the big bad exorcist who chased me out of the Vatican's come calling! Gone from a shitty exorcist to a shitty Angel, I see! And you even brought friends! Well, honey, if you want to pick up where we left off, I'm game! It's a lot more interesting than what's happening downstairs!"

Griselda cracked her knuckles, and without turning her head, she spoke to her fellow Angels.

"Issei, Dulio. You heard the lunatic. Find wherever "downstairs" is and save the nun. I'll handle _this_ jokester."

Dulio grabbed Issei by the arm and began running down the aisle, Issei struggling to not get pulled along. "You heard the lady, Issei! Let's go!"

"Oh no you don't!" the crazed priest cackled as he dove towards the duo, holding a sword.

He never reached his targets.

Feet from the Joker and Jack, his arm was caught by the Queen of Hearts. For a fraction of a moment, the two stared each other in the eye.

"Your opponent is right here, Freed."

With that, she cracked him hard enough across the face to send him crashing into the pews.

* * *

Dulio had barely let go of Issei's arm before he pressed himself against the pulpit, the fourth incantation ringing in both of their ears.

"Issei!" he grunted, voice straining from the effort. "Help me with this!"

"What are you do-"

Dulio gave an agitated shake of his head. "No time! Just help me!"

Issei didn't ask any more questions and submitted to Dulio's request.

Moments later, a loud series of scraping sounds began to be heard as the pulpit was unwillingly pushed across the floor by the unnaturally strong pair of Angels, revealing a staircase leading down.

The two wasted no time darting down it.

"How'd you even know that was there?" Issei demanded as the two sprinted down the staircase into the basement.

Dulio shrugged as he ran. "Just a hunch! Lots of churches have something like this!"

The fifth incantation came through.

* * *

Within seconds, the two reached the foot of the descent, which opened into an enormous, chamber lit by candles. On the opposite end from the entrance was a raised platform.

Atop the platform, her back turned to the intruders, was Raynare, standing next to a large cross. On the cross, chained in place, was -

"Asia!"

The nun picked her head up, but a reply did not come.

At the same time, the Fallen Angel turned and noticed them.

"Well, well, well. I see you didn't listen, Issei. It's really too bad."

When she caught sight of Dulio, her reaction was equally dismissive. "Brought some help?" She chuckled coldly. "Won't do you any good, I'm afraid. You're still outnumbered."

It was only at that moment that Issei noticed that the space between the rise and the entrance was populated by a mob of armed men. Judging by their robes, they were all former exorcists.

 _How the fuck didn't I consider this?_

Incantation six was announced.

Issei's mind was a blank. He had no way of getting to Raynare as things stood; he wasn't a good enough swordsman to take on this many opponents at once, and even if he was, he had no way to get Asia away from Raynare.

When the brunette's head turned to Michael's Joker, however, he was suddenly puzzled.

Dulio's face, unlike his, was set in a confident grin as he gave a single snap of his fingers.

Issei's eyes then went wide as the swath of guards began to scream in agonizing pain, their bodies steadily being encased in ice that had sprung from nothing.

A moment later, every guard in the room was encased completely in the grip of an icy tomb.

Neither Raynare nor Issei had any time to take in this development before Dulio gave another finger snap.

The frozen guards quite literally shattered.

Raynare and Issei wore identical expressions of shock as they stared at Dulio, whose grin widened.

"You were saying, Fallen Angel?"

Raynare seemed to snap out of her confused daze at that, and readied a light spear to kill Asia with.

Dulio just chuckled and gave a final snap.

A bellowing roar washed over the room, drowning out the seventh incantation as Raynare was suddenly catapulted off the stand and straight into the field of shattered bodies, landing on her side without an ounce of grace about ten feet from Issei. She did not, however, stay down, and quickly began to pick herself up, her face fixed in a murderous glare towards the two Angels.

"Issei," Dulio said, his voice tranquil, "I'll get the nun. You deal with the Fallen Angel. Got it?"

The Joker's words wrenched the Jack back to reality, and he gave his fellow Saint a single word: "Done."

Dulio nodded before sprinting towards the platform.

This did not go unnoticed by Raynare, but before she could start to move, Issei grabbed her by the shoulder, spun her around, and sank his fist into her nose. It didn't break, but Raynare clearly felt the blow, as her hateful gaze fixed on him and she shoved him several feet away from her.

"You _piece of shit!_ " she screamed as a familiar spear formed in her hand and she revealed her wings.

Issei's face was etched in a grim look as he summoned his sword of light and momentarily revealed his own wings and halo. He offered only two words to his opponent.

"Bring it."

* * *

Raynare leaped at him like a savage animal, attempting to simply impale him once more, a move Issei easily sidestepped. When he attempted to punish her seemingly major opening, however, she proved nimble enough to deflect his sword to the ground.

He was barely able to roll beneath her spear's followup sweep, narrowly avoiding having his arm cut off in the process.

That, however, made the cut to _her_ arm all the sweeter, though the eighth incantation also helped.

Raynare screeched in pain and fury. The wound was a minor cut, nothing that Issei would have paid much mind to, but Raynare was clearly running on irrational rage at this point.

Both fortunately and unfortunately for Issei, that translated into an insanely aggressive opponent.

Raynare came at him again, trying to stab him through somewhere, anywhere. Issei managed to deflect or avoid the shots, but he was completely unable to counterattack as he was pushed backwards.

 _Damn it... Gotta find some way to get her on the defensive..._

Issei had to keep stepping back to avoid the stabs, and he knew he had only a few more steps before he hit the wall.

Then, Raynare's stab was a slight bit wide, and Issei snatched the chance.

Dodging around it before she could pull back, Issei's sword bit deep into the side of Raynare's torso.

This, however, did not stun the Fallen Angel even through her tortured cries, and Issei realized a fraction of an instant too late that he had not left himself enough time to avoid her next shot.

Excruciating pain lanced through Issei's shoulder blade as Raynare's spear pierced it.

Issei let out a scream, but forced himself to focus through the agony as he was put back on the defensive himself.

 _Shit... I've gotta end this fast... I can't take another shot like that..._

Yet again Raynare charged, her spear stabbing wildly once more.

And once more, Issei found himself deflecting shots and giving up ground as the ninth incantation blasted a pair of ears that weren't listening.

Then, Raynare made the error that would decide the battle.

She leaped towards him once more and, rather than stab, she swung her spear from right to left in an attempt to decapitate Issei, misjudging the length of her spear by a few inches.

Those few inches made it very easy for Issei to lean back to dodge the swing, and then pin the spear at an incredibly awkward angle.

Raynare realized her error and attempted to reinforce the spear with her other hand. Unfortunately for her, she had not taken one final factor into account, not quite grasping within her anger-fueled mind what the incantations were referring to.

 _Now or never, Ddraig! Do it!_

 **"TRANSFER!"**

The light spear disintegrated beneath the force of Issei's sword as his arm suddenly gained a monstrous increase in strength. The sword, however, did not stop there, and Raynare suddenly found herself missing not just most of her left hand, but most of her left _wing_ , as well.

A deafening shriek echoed through the entire room as Raynare fell to the ground, writhing in agony as blood spewed from her injuries. Moments later, she fell unconscious, to the mercy of the ears of everyone else in the room.

The battle was over.

* * *

The Jack's mind did not fully comprehend that he had defeated his killer until he heard the slow applause.

Turning his head to face the sound of the noise, he saw Dulio clapping, the Joker's face a wide grin. Asia stood directly behind him, obviously frightened out of her wits.

The Jack of Hearts hadn't even noticed Dulio freeing her.

"A very good showing if I do say so myself, Issei."

That was when Asia darted forward. "Issei! You're hurt!"

A few moments of her powers later, and it was as though the spear had never pierced him at all – which was especially good, given that the adrenaline that had made the pain tolerable was fast draining from Issei's blood.

"Thanks, Asia," Issei said after a deep breath. "I owe you one."

Asia's response was a vigorous shake of her head. "No, I owe you way more, Issei. You saved me! Thank you!"

Issei scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. "Well, Dulio here did most of the work..."

"I don't care! _You_ beat Raynare!"

"Asia, was it?" Dulio suddenly spoke up.

"Err... yes, sir," Asia said, her self-consciousness all too obvious.

"No need to call me "sir", Asia. We're your friends here. I hate to ask, but could you try to do... whatever it was you did with Issei and try to stop the bleeding on that one?" Dulio pointed at Raynare's limp body.

Evidenly, Michael's Joker noticed Issei's incredulous look, because he addressed his concern immediately after. "We need her alive, Issei. Azazel's got some explaining to do."

 _The Governor-General of the Fallen Angels?_

Asia was able to stop the blood flow, but the Fallen Angel's crippled wing and hand were more permanent injuries.

Dulio did not waste any more time. After obtaining Asia's full name, he snatched up Raynare's body like a sack of potatoes and returned to Heaven.

* * *

"Griselda?" Issei called up the stairs as he and Asia ascended them, genuinely fearful that something might have happened to his fellow Saint. "Are you okay?"

After a moment, her reply came down the steps. "Your concern is touching, Issei."

A moment later, Issei and Asia reached the top of the stairway and saw Griselda seated in the sole undamaged pew.

"Touching, but unnecessary," Griselda said casually as she pointed towards the quartet of corpses strewn around – not just the priest, but three more Fallen Angels had died to her brutal method of combat. Each was covered with innumerable tiny wounds, while Griselda didn't seem to have a scratch on her.

The Queen nodded towards Asia. "The nun, I take it?"

Issei confirmed this fact for her.

"What is your name, dear?" Griselda asked, her voice patient and kind.

"I'm... Asia... Asia Argento..."

Griselda nodded, her eyes shutting. "Griselda Quarta."

Asia was silent for a moment before she seemingly found the courage to ask the next question. "Umm... Griselda...?"

The Queen's eyes opened.

"Yes?"

Asia's fingertips twiddled together cutely. "I... I saw that Issei had wings and a halo... is he an... an Angel...?"

Griselda nodded, a smile creeping across her face. "Indeed he is. As am I."

Griselda then stood and showed her full angelic form to the excommunicated nun, something which Issei had also never seen.

Asia took a sharp breath, while Issei noted with an odd dismay her half-dozen wings.

For several moments, Asia was frozen. When she did finally move again, she dropped into a bow, and her next words were desperate apologies, effectively for making them rescue her.

Griselda chuckled at this. "Rise, Asia, and take heart. You have done nothing to apologize for. I do not even cast fault with you for seeking the help of Fallen Angels."

She nodded to Issei. "Return to Heaven with Asia when you're ready."

Griselda then joined Dulio.

With that, Issei and Asia were free to embrace each other, tears of joy flowing from both of their eyes.

* * *

 _And cut._


	9. Biting the Bullet

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For several moments, Issei and Asia remained locked in an embrace, both incredibly happy just to have the nightmare end.

Asia had once more buried her head in Issei's shirt, clinging to him as though he was about to disappear forever. Issei was only too happy to oblige her, his chin resting on her head and his arms wrapped around her frame.

Both ignored the ruin around them; they were simply content to remain as they were.

Eventually, however, they pulled apart.

"Well," Issei said to Asia, his face a smile, "You ready?"

Asia swallowed nervously, then took a deep breath, evidently trying to steel her nerves and not fully succeeding. "I- I'm... I'm ready..."

Issei gathered Asia in his arms, but just as they were about to go, Asia suddenly cried out, "No! Wait!"

The Jack let her go, confused. "What's wrong, Asia?"

Asia darted away from him. "I forgot something!"

Issei blinked, trying to think of what Asia might have forgotten as she dug around the pulpit, her face screwed up in worry. A heartbeat later, it shifted to an expression of relief.

When she stood again, she held the stuffed animal he had won for her not twelve hours earlier.

Issei's smile widened at that as she ran back to him.

" _Now_ I'm ready," she said, her face nervously excited as she looked up at him.

With that, Issei threw his arms around her and began the process of ascending them both.

* * *

As soon as they arrived in First Heaven and entered the central gathering hall, Issei noticed Griselda seated at one of the tables near the entrance. When _she_ noticed _them_ , she immediately waved both of them over.

This was an excellent thing, as throughout the hall, Angels were turning to stare at the young nun who had arrived with Issei. Asia had not missed this, and was wilting underneath the weight of the gazes of the dozens of holy beings.

The nun and the Jack each took a seat at the table where Griselda sat.

"So," Griselda said, immediately opening the conversation, "Welcome to First Heaven, Asia Argento."

"It's... very nice..." Asia offered in reply, her focus on the stares and not the Queen of Heart's words, something Griselda picked up on instantly.

"Ignore them, Asia. Issei and I should be able to keep them off of you until the Seraphs figure out how to handle your situation."

She flashed her eyes over to Issei, who nodded.

"What she said, Asia."

Issei knew how Asia felt. He remembered all too clearly the first time he had been alone in the gathering hall that first weekend. He remembered the stares and the obnoxious, repetitive questions that had not stopped until he became old news.

He was happy to help keep Asia from being subjected to that.

"Were there any problems with the guards?" Griselda asked.

Issei shook his head. "They said you'd already come by and let them know the situation. They let us in, no issues. Thanks for that, by the way."

Griselda shrugged. "My pleasure, Issei."

"Curious," Issei said casually, "What did Dulio do with the Fallen Angel? Throw her in Second Heaven?"

"Fallen Angel?"

Issei mentally slapped himself. _Idiot, she was upstairs when all that happened!_

"Well," Issei explained, "We took the Fallen Angel that I mentioned before prisoner after we rescued Asia. Dulio apparently came to Heaven with her."

Griselda shrugged. "Then in all likelihood, you are correct, Issei." She nodded to Asia. "Second Heaven is where Angels who have sinned are imprisoned, and where any prisoners taken by Heaven are kept."

Issei nodded. "He mentioned that 'Azazel had some explaining to do', too..."

Griselda leaned back in her chair, a hint of anger entering her tone. "Indeed he does. I would especially like to know why his subordinates decided that killing an innocent person and _trying_ to kill another was acceptable."

The Jack winced at that.

"Umm... Lady Griselda...?" came Asia's timid voice from across the table.

The Queen smiled. "You do not need to address me so formally, Asia," she replied gently. "What is it?"

"I... I don't mean to sound selfish... but what... what's going to happen to me?" Asia choked out, fear drenching her tone.

The warm smile vanished as a frown crossed Griselda's features. "I genuinely do not know, Asia. It will come down to whatever our leadership decides."

Issei noted the obvious piece of information that his fellow Saint left out.

"I'm not too worried, Asia," he said, attempting to reassure her. "They're pretty reasonable."

An awkward silence ensued, which Issei was unable to tolerate for more than a few seconds before he tried to break it.

"Griselda, when Dulio and I were down in the basement..."

Griselda looked up. "What about it?"

"Well," Issei said, drumming his fingers on the table absentmindedly, "When we got down there, there was a huge pack of armed men. Rogue exorcists, I think. But anyway, Dulio just snapped his fingers... and then _bam_ , they're all frozen solid. Snapped them again, they shattered. One more, and that Fallen Angel's flying through the air. Seriously, what the hell did he do?"

Griselda gave an annoyed sigh at his curse, but didn't waste a breath commenting on it before she started to chuckle.

"Oh, Issei. If you think that was impressive, just realize that what Dulio did down there was barely a party trick compared to his full strength."

Issei's jaw hit the table, and Griselda gave a half-smirk. "Dulio, in addition to being incredibly fast and highly skilled with magic, is also the possessor of the second-strongest Longinus in existence – Zenith Tempest."

The younger Saint of the two blinked, disbelieving. "You're kidding me."

Griselda shook her head, her lips still pulled in that same smirk. "Not at all. He's not called "Heaven's Trump Card" for nothing, Issei. He is _easily_ the strongest Brave Saint we have and is more powerful than the vast majority of born Angels. I would say to not envy him, but I despise hypocrites."

Issei's hands gripped his bowing head, pulling at fistfuls of hair. "Damn... and I barely beat that Fallen Angel..."

It was Griselda's turn to be surprised. " _You_ beat her and not Dulio? Excellent work, Issei!"

Issei snorted. "You call beating her by the skin of my teeth "excellent work"?

"I do indeed," Griselda countered. "I have trained numerous exorcists, of all ages, Issei. The vast, _vast_ majority of them, even if they were Angels, would not have had the courage to stare down a _Fallen_ Angel after just three weeks of training, let alone the skill to fight one and win."

Issei blinked before summoning his Sacred Gear and pointing at it. "I only won because of this."

Griselda shrugged. "And? You _won_. Contrary to popular belief, Issei, it does not matter if you struggled to defeat an opponent or if you had to counter your own weaknesses with other techniques. What matters is that you defeated her without getting any innocents hurt."

"Yeah, and you or Dulio could've dealt with her, easily."

The Queen of Heart's voice became stern. "Yes, and we were both exorcists for years before we became Angels. We are not a fair comparison for yourself, Issei."

Issei shook his head. "Whatever."

The Queen of Hearts narrowed her eyes at him. "We can finish this conversation later, Issei."

"Why?"

The Queen did not reply, only pointing past both Issei and Asia.

When they turned around, they both caught sight of Dulio walking towards them, looking a bit... disarrayed, for lack of a better term. His voice, however, was still jovial, despite its subject matter.

"So apparently, Lady Gabriel wants to talk to her Queen and Jack in Zebel, pronto. I can guess why; Lord Michael already practically chewed _my_ ears off. Guess it's you two's turn."

Issei sighed as he and Griselda stood. He'd known this was coming, but he still wasn't looking forward to it. Griselda's expression seemed to indicate similar feelings.

"Hey Dulio," Issei said to the Joker as the Jack and Queen turned to leave. "Could you sit with Asia until we get back, at least? Keep the barrage of questions off?"

"Sure," Dulio replied, nodding as he took a seat next to her. As he was walking away, the brown-haired teen could already hear Dulio begin to strike up a conversation with the blonde nun.

* * *

When Issei and Griselda arrived in Sixth Heaven, they saw that Gabriel was drinking a cup of tea and dropped to their knees in the traditional expression of respect.

Gabriel, for her part, very pointedly did _not_ address them as she forced them to remain with their heads bowed as she casually sipped her drink. The lone female Seraph took her time with this, savoring the flavor as she paced this way and that, letting the tension build up within her two Saints.

When she finished, she placed her cup down on a table and faced her Queen and Jack with a tranquil expression.

"So, what do you two have to say for yourselves?"

Neither had a response.

"Rise."

Both did so, remaining silent.

Gabriel took a deep breath. "Griselda, _why_ did you not come to me? Perhaps I could have talked sense into my Jack."

Issei shook his head, not letting Griselda get a word in. "Lady Gabriel, I can tell you right now that even you wouldn't have been able to stop me."

"Yet she agreed to go with you," Gabriel shot back, ignoring Griselda's shocked gasp. "She made no attempt to stop you or inform me of the situation. I suppose the question, then, is thus. What were you _thinking_ , Issei?"

Issei had no answer, but Gabriel wouldn't have let him get one in even if he had.

"You should know better than any of us that that area is the territory of Devils! You've risked reigniting the war with what you did today!"

Gabriel evidently realized she was shouting here, because her next words were spoken at a more normal volume, though her voice was still a mix of anger and worry.

"Only you can be in Kuoh without breaking the truce, yet you brought two of the strongest Brave Saints we have along with you. I don't know if you've realized, Issei, but there is no chance that your actions today have gone unnoticed by the Devils. Do you have a plan for dealing with that? Or did that even occur to you?"

It hadn't and he didn't, but Issei's expression did not change. "I wasn't about to let an innocent girl die because I was too worried about what the Devils might think to do something."

Gabriel's countenance turned sad. "I don't claim that there was an easy answer here, Issei. But you should have come to us rather than just dashing off without thinking. "

Issei's fists balled up ever so slightly at those words, and he struggled for about the third time that day to keep his voice relaxed. "Lady Gabriel, there was no time for that. Those Fallen Angels were going to kill her in just a couple of hours. I didn't have time to come up with a plan. If I'd thought I could handle it without dragging Griselda or Dulio into the whole mess, I would have."

Gabriel frowned, her eyes shifting to her Queen. "From what I was told by Michael, you didn't have to do much dragging."

Griselda's eyes shut. "I apologize, Lady Gabriel. I acted in error."

Gabriel seemed to accept that, before her eyes shifted to Issei. After a deep breath, Issei gave his apologies as well.

The female Seraph then stepped forward and pulled both of them into a tight hug before she began to whisper to them both.

"Despite everything I've said, I _am_ still proud of both you for saving the nun. Just... _please_ think ahead next time!"

Her two Saints gave their assurances, and Gabriel released them after another moment.

"You both are dismissed."

* * *

When Issei stumbled back into his home, he felt as though it had been an eternity despite the fact he had last been there that afternoon. After being chewed out by his parents for missing dinner, he returned to his room and flopped down on the bed.

 **"Well, that went better than I would have dared hope."**

Issei didn't bother to remove his head from the pillow with his next words.

"Yeah. Asia's safe. That's all that matters."

 **"However, that still leaves the problem of how to deal with the Devils. Gabriel is right, you know; there's no way that it escaped their detection, especially with you using Transfer and Dulio's ice-sculpture stunt."**

"You know I was trying to use Explosion, right?"

 **"Funny, that's not what I heard. What I heard was "Now or never! Do it!" Not "Use Explosion!" Not to mention..."**

Issei sighed. "What?"

 **"You shouldn't need** _ **me**_ **to use that ability** _ **for**_ **you."**

"You said you couldn't teach me anything else!"

 **"That does not excuse you from practicing on your own."**

Issei sighed once more. "Yeah, I know. Just... my life's turned into one problem after another lately... first the training, then the Devils, then this whole mess with Asia, and now the Devils again... almost never get a spare second anymore..."

After several minutes, Ddraig spoke up again, having jumped subjects.

 **"By the way, Issei, did you finish that paper?"**

Luckily for Issei, Griselda wasn't there to hear the long string of language that escaped his throat as he dragged himself off the bed.

She probably would have cut out his tongue.

* * *

It had been Tsubaki who had felt the shots of energy coming from the old church, due only to her proximity to it; they were slight enough that she almost didn't bother investigating. Only duty forced her to move.

And almost immediately after arriving, she had called to inform Sona and the remainder of her peerage of what she had found.

As soon as they arrived, they moved in the church to take full note of what had happened.

The old church was in ruins; only a single pew had not been demolished. A window had been busted down, and the figures of religious figures had been destroyed one and all.

Amid the destruction lay the bodies.

"I count three Fallen Angels," Saji said after a moment. "And somebody else over there."

Sona turned her head to look at her Pawn. "What is it, Saji?"

The blonde teen was pointing at a fourth body. "Looks like a rogue exorcist. Guess this was a bit more elaborate than we expected."

The priest, whoever he had been, had suffered a brutal death if his body was anything to go by; numerous wounds covered his body, his robes tattered. The Fallen Angels had met similar ends, by the looks of things.

"Well," Tsubaki said, pointing towards the staircase the pulpit had covered, "Guess that just leaves that down there."

* * *

Immediately upon coming to the foot of the descent, Sona knew for certain that whatever had happened had happened _quite_ recently.

 _We probably just missed whoever did this_...

"This" was the pile of half-frozen blood and guts that were strewn all over the floor. Nothing in the room had escaped whatever had happened.

Sona and her peerage took in the sight with varying degrees of stoicism; Sona and Tsubaki barely blinked, while her Knight ran away to vomit.

At the other end of the room, next to a raised platform, hung a raised cross, chains meant to bind a person dangling from it.

"Well..." Sona said slowly, "That about wraps things up here. I'll handle the report. You can all return home."

Steadily, the other members of the peerage warped away until only the King and Queen remained.

"President?" Tsubaki asked. "Any idea who did this? I can't think of anyone besides your sister who can manipulate ice..."

Sona nodded. "That's true. That just leaves one other person who might be behind it."

Tsubaki sighed. "Looks like we'll be having _another_ discussion with Hyoudou in the near future..."

All she received in reply from her King was another nod.

* * *

 _And cut._


	10. Spots of Luck

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

After the raid on the church and his horrible sleep the prior evening, Issei Hyoudou felt as though he could sleep for days.

Unfortunately, the night only allowed for a paltry eight hours or so, and the harsh sound of his alarm clock blared through his rest long before he was ready.

As he tiredly pulled the sheets off of himself and went through his morning routine, Issei thought over the newest issue confronting him.

 _Wonder when they'll come calling...?_

He didn't have to wait long.

* * *

Issei wasn't out of the first hour of the school day when the announcement he had been dreading blasted over the intercom, demanding he come to the Student Council office immediately. Reluctantly, he pushed himself out of his desk and wordlessly left the room.

As he took one step at a time towards the office, Issei was torn between a desire and his knowledge. On one side, he wanted to run out of the school and never look back. On the other, he knew that he could run to the other side of the world and the supernatural world would still be able to find him.

He did not regret being turned into an Angel, but he sometimes wondered if it would have been better if Rias or Sona had resurrected him.

 _Where would I be...? Would there be less shit I have to deal with?_

 **"I'm breaking that rule, Issei."**

Issei jumped and quickly looked around the empty hallway, calming slightly when he saw no other people. "What do you want, Ddraig?"

 **"No matter why you're there or my own feelings, you're much better off in Gabriel's service than that of any Devil, I assure you."**

"What makes you say that?"

 **"The Brave Saints care about you beyond your status as my host."**

* * *

The Student Council President and Rias were the only ones present when he arrived. The Jack wasn't surprised to find either of them; both Devils likely wanted to know the truth of what had happened.

"So," Issei said, his voice tired, "What do you need?"

"Issei, what happened at the church?" Rias responded almost immediately. "Sona told me what she and her peerage found there. We _know_ you were involved, don't bother denying it."

For a moment, Gabriel's Jack quite considered lying anyway. He knew the truth was not a welcome thing.

Yet he also knew that no false explanation he could come up with would adequately explain the utter chaos the Devils had seen.

"I went in there with a couple other Brave Saints," he sighed, "to rescue a nun who'd been taken prisoner by Fallen Angels."

Both Devils were, for a moment, silent once more; then, Sona broke it.

"Issei Hyoudou... was there no better way to do that? Did you consider trying to contact one of _us_ to help you?"

Issei sighed again. "Sona, I don't have your phone numbers, and I didn't have time to scour Kuoh to find any of you, especially when I wasn't sure if you'd even help me to begin with."

Sona looked almost offended at the last point. "We may be Devils, Issei, but that doesn't mean we want to see innocent people hurt – even if they're from the church. We would _certainly_ have tried to help you."

"Even then, like I said, I had no way of even trying to get your help."

All three of the students could see that this conversation was going nowhere.

"I'll let it slide," Rias said, her voice revealing nothing. "While you did bring a couple of other Angels here without our consent, you _did_ have a good reason behind your actions, and you got rid of some intruders in our territory in the meantime. I think we can just forget this little incident - though, do _not_ make a habit of these sorts of antics, Issei Hyoudou."

Issei felt relief wash over him at those words.

"Alright, Issei..." Sona said, before taking a pen and scribbling something on a piece of paper. Upon handing it to Issei, Ddraig's host saw that it was a pair of phone numbers.

"If you need help with a supernatural problem, you can call either of those numbers. The top is mine, the bottom is Rias's. Please do that _before_ you get other Angels involved, at least if time permits..."

Issei looked the numbers over, before he folded the paper and put it into his pocket. "Thanks. Can I get back to class, now?"

Sona sighed. "Yes, Issei. You may leave."

And leave he did, post-haste.

* * *

Issei had been quite surprised at how painless the entire talk with Sona and Rias had been. They were slightly annoyed, but had accepted his reasoning, in the end.

 _Went pretty well, I'd say..._

As the final bell rang, Issei darted home and get to Heaven so he could lose himself in training.

* * *

"Your skill is increasing day by day," Griselda complimented Issei as she disarmed him for the fifteenth time that practice session.

Issei snorted dryly. "Yeah," he said, picking up his sword, "but I'm still down... how many?"

"You only improve through practice," Griselda said sharply.

Issei cricked his neck. "Practice can only get you so far."

The Queen of Hearts' response was even sharper than it had been previously. "True, but you will go nowhere without it."

As Jack and Queen crossed blades again, Issei blurted out a question.

"How'd you manage to get six wings, anyhow?"

As their blades rung, Griselda gave a slight shrug, and her tone shifted to one more casual. "I _was_ one of the strongest female exorcists, Issei." To Issei's surprise, she offered him a grin. "Recall that envy is a sin."

With that, she disarmed him once more. "If practice is not enough, Issei," she said as indicated for him to pick up his sword yet again, "find another method. Step out of your comfort zone."

* * *

As the next two hours blurred together into a string of homework assignments, Issei was only partly focused on the work; the other part of his mind was concerned with his desire to grow his strength.

 _What the hell can I even do?_

His training with a sword seemed to be progressing; his defeat of Raynare proved that much to his own mind.

His training with magic, on the other hand, seemed to have stalled.

 _Beyond light weapons, what else can I really do?_

Issei closed the last textbook.

"Damn... what else?"

 **"Why do you** _ **need**_ **anything else?"**

Issei jumped, despite knowing the voice.

 **"Angels are known for light magic. Why not just put your energy into that?"**

"Well..." Issei mumbled, his thoughts jumbled. "...what if I end up fighting someone who isn't affected by it? What if it gets shut down or something?"

 **"That's quite unlikely, Issei."**

"Who cares?" Issei shot back. "It can't hurt to have access to different techniques..."

 **"Admittedly true. You wish to be a jack of all trades, then? Literally?"**

"I guess, but... I'm kind of running short on things I can learn... I mean, I'm already hitting the limit on what I can do with my light magic. Weapons seem to be the main thing I'm good at, and there's only so many of those."

 **"Why not ask Michael's Joker?"**

Issei rolled his eyes. "Well, _duh_ , of course I was going to do that. Thing is, I've got no idea what to ask about."

 **"Just realize that no type of magic will come nearly as easily to you as light magic did. As an Angel you have an instant affinity for light that makes it very easy to bend it to your will. You will not have this advantage with any other element."**

"I don't care. I'll learn whatever I have to anyway."

 **"Easy words to say until you start slamming your head into a metaphorical brick wall."**

"Your support is _quite_ appreciated," Issei said, his voice snidely sarcastic. "Thank you for the vote of confidence, it does wonders for my desire to not leave you bored in there."

 **"I speak from experience, Issei. I** _ **invented**_ **new magical techniques, thank you."**

"What did you do before that?"

 **"Didn't we go over this? I burned my enemies with fire – a fire that would not extinguish until ash was all that remained."**

At those words, it was though a door in Issei's head was forced open – a door he had not even realized was there.

"Fire, huh?"

A few puzzle pieces began to come together in Issei's mind as he remembered what he had read on Zenith Tempest.

 _Gives the user to control elements... fire being one of them..._

The brunette felt a smile come across his face.

"Hey, Ddraig..." Issei said to his hand, his voice a singsong.

 **"What?"** Ddraig's voice was deadpan.

"I think I just figured it out. Thanks a lot, buddy."

 **"You're welcome. Now shut up and go to bed."**

Issei's face scrunched up. "Yes, mother..."

* * *

As Issei drifted off, the dragon within him began to analyze his host's behavior and words.

 _ **He trains with so much vigor during his sword practices... almost as though he's... desperate... he's always kicking himself over his screw-ups, and now he wants to learn to manipulate fire on top of all of that? What's with this obsession?**_

Ddraig began to feel a worry for his host's mental state begin to crawl through his mind.

* * *

 _And cut._


	11. Cross-Examination

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

As long as Issei lived, the sound of his alarm clock buzzing was never going to be a welcome noise.

After nearly smashing the wailing device seated on his nightstand, the brunette dragged himself from the sheets.

He moved through his morning routine on autopilot, each action so thoroughly memorized that he could have performed them with his eyes shut.

Issei was far more concerned with the discussion he and Ddraig had had the night before.

 _Fire magic, huh? Well, suppose it's fitting... host of the dragon known for his god-consuming flames knowing how to use flames himself..._

Issei smiled at the thought, and continued to entertain the thought throughout an uneventful school day.

After dumping his books, Issei did what he did every day: Ascend back to Heaven to get his training over and done with.

* * *

Upon his arrival in the now-familiar gathering hall of First Heaven, he noticed Dulio, Griselda and Asia all seated at a table near the entrance.

 _Odd..._

As soon as the trio saw him, they all stood, Michael's Joker waving Issei over.

"Hey, you guys," Issei started warmly. The brunette stopped, however, when he noticed the grim looks on the faces of his fellow Saints, and Asia's red, frightened eyes.

"Wait... am I in trouble?"

Griselda shook her head. "No, Issei, but we will not be training today."

Issei blinked. "Why not? What's going on?"

Dulio spoke next. "Azazel's arrived. He apparently wants all four of us present while he interrogates his subordinate."

Issei tensed up as he let out a slow breath. "Interrogates her?"

Griselda shrugged before taking the reins. "He claims that Raynare was acting against his orders. Convenient, I know."

Issei's lips set in a line as he took a deep breath. "What are the Seraph's orders?"

"The three of us are to accede to the request," the Queen of Hearts replied. "Asia is encouraged to as well, but she is not required to if she wishes to avoid it."

"I'm going, too!" Asia piped up, sounding quite a bit more confident than she looked.

Issei sighed as Asia darted into his arms. "Well then... let's get this over with..."

* * *

Once the four had arrived in Second Heaven, they were immediately greeted by Gabriel, who motioned towards the person she had evidently been speaking with. He, for his part, started the conversation, his voice friendly and relaxed.

"So, I take it you four are the witnesses?"

The man was tall, towering over everyone else in the room. His hair was a clashing mix of color; the spiked bangs he possessed were dark yellow, while the rest of his hair was of a color similar to Issei's. He was adorned in a red overcoat and dark pants, his overall outfit and demeanor a relaxed, unassuming contrast to the female Seraph with which he had been speaking.

Yet this was all countered by his aura, felt by every Angel in Second Heaven, that utterly dwarfed whatever Asia's rescuers might have felt at the church.

There was no mistaking the man's identity.

"Indeed we are, Azazel."

Dulio had been the one to speak.

Azazel nodded. "Well then, why don't we just get to the point?"

* * *

Just a few minutes later, the Governor General of the Fallen Angels, three Brave Saints and a human nun were within a cell.

The cell was perhaps thirty feet by twenty. Its furnishings, spartan in nature and all pressed against the wall furthest from the heavy metal door, consisted of a bed, a toilet and sink; the walls were a drab gray that promised no comfort to those confined within. The entire block of cells was locked down with a series of spells explicitly designed to prevent anyone from teleporting in or out.

Within the space between the door and the bed, there were two chairs directly facing each other. In the chair with its back to the door, Azazel sat, one leg folded over the other and his arms laced over the back of the chair.

In the chair that faced the cell, the crippled Raynare sat, her tense posture the opposite of the Governor General's.

Whether that had to do with her boss' displeased expression or the daggers being glared through her by the three Angels and nun scattered along the walls, no one but Raynare could say.

The low-ranked Fallen Angel's wounds had been bandaged, but she was otherwise disheveled, her normally lovely countenance smudged and her hair a tangled, uncombed mess. Yet despite that, there seemed to be an odd satisfaction in her face.

Azazel was the one who started the conversation.

"So, Raynare, it's good to see you again."

His words were anything but friendly.

"Y-y-yes... Yes sir... It's... It's g-good to s-see you too..." Raynare stammered in reply, obviously not expecting the quiet, simmering anger hidden beneath his words.

"Curious, Raynare," Azazel offered, "mind explaining to me what exactly happened on your last mission?"

Raynare tensed up even further at those words, and did not reply at first.

"Do I need to get forceful with you?"

"No..." Raynare's voice was crushed and defeated, the same tone Asia had taken when the Fallen Angel had snatched her.

"Well then, get to it."

Raynare gulped. "I... I went to Kuoh just like you told me..."

Azazel's expression was quickly shifting to one of annoyance, as he motioned with his hand to continue.

"And then?"

"Well... I asked Issei Hyoudou out on a date... tried to get closer to him..."

Azazel chewed on this; Raynare, meanwhile, did not need to be told twice to keep going.

"Then, once I was able to confirm he had a Sacred Gear, I... I, uh..."

"You _what_?" Azazel snapped, his tone a dangerous one.

"She killed me."

Both Fallen Angels turned towards Issei at that, as did Asia. Azazel's expression revealed nothing, Raynare's was terrified, while Asia's was one of pure shock.

"She... did _what_?" the nun whispered to him.

"I'll explain later," he replied quietly.

Azazel, meanwhile, had turned back to face his subordinate, once-concealed rage becoming evident in his features, though his voice was calm and controlled.

"Perhaps there was a catastrophic misunderstanding with what your mission was supposed to be, _Raynare_."

Raynare could not even bring herself to look her leader in the face as he thundered on.

"Your mission, as it was given, was to confirm or disprove our intelligence that claimed he had a Sacred Gear within him. After that, you were to determine whether or not it was active, and proceed to either keep it deactivated or try to recruit him if it was awake. Killing him was to be a last resort, if he was out of control or attempted to harm you."

Azazel's elbows came to rest on his knees, his fingers interlocking as he laid his chin on the tops of his knuckles.

"What part of those orders sounded like a straightforward "Kill Issei Hyoudou" to you?"

Raynare had no answer, and Azazel was too busy piling on the demanding questions to give her the chance even if she did.

"And then, not only that, you decide to try and victimize a nun who you knew had absolutely nowhere to go. Let me guess, you wanted her Sacred Gear?"

Raynare nodded.

"I suppose you're going to try and tell me that you didn't know that taking her Sacred Gear would kill her?"

His subordinate shook her head.

Azazel gave a hum of acknowledgment before he gave the final stack of questions.

"Okay, Raynare, put the puzzle pieces together for me, because I'm not seeing it. _What_ exactly was your plan here? Did you think I wouldn't notice that the person we'd been watching had suddenly died under suspicious circumstances when he didn't seem to be dangerous? Or that you suddenly seemed to possess quite the powerful Sacred Gear after a nun you took in wound up dead? Did you think I wouldn't put two and two together and figure out what you'd done?"

Raynare remained silent, which Azazel did not take kindly to.

"I said _explain yourself!_ " he roared.

His subordinate had begun to weep as her next words were choked out. "It w-was all f-for you... Lord Azazel..."

"No."

For the first time since the conversation had started, Raynare's eyes rose to directly meet her superior's.

"You didn't do it for me," Azazel snapped, his volume back to normal. "You did it because you wanted power and to shirk responsibility. If you're going to try and run a river of crap past me, at least try and make it not smell like shit."

With that, Azazel stood and turned to the Angels.

"On that note, I've heard everything I need to. I offer my sincerest apologies for all of the trouble my subordinate has caused all of you. Naturally, as the presiding Governor General of the Fallen Angels, I take full blame and responsibility for her actions."

Azazel's eyes flicked to Issei.

"I also want to offer my personal apologies to you, Issei Hyoudou. My subordinate's attack on you was inexcusable, and for that I am truly sorry."

Issei nodded. "I accept your apology, Lord Azazel," he replied, his tone and words formal, neatly hiding his quiet desire to strangle the man.

Azazel returned the nod before facing Asia. "I wish to extend the same apology to you, Asia Argento. My subordinate nearly forced you to endure Issei's fate, and I can only ask for your forgiveness."

It was a testament to the sheer kindness Asia possessed that she immediately accepted his apology, something that brought a genuine smile to the Governor General's face.

Azazel turned to leave, but before he could do so, Raynare's voice called out to him.

"W-what are you... Lord Azazel... I... please..."

The Fallen Angel near the door turned halfway at those words, before his voice rang clear in his subordinate's ears. "It's not me you need to be begging, _Raynare_. Your punishment is that you'll be left as the Angel's prisoner, to be dealt with as they see fit." He snorted. "I wouldn't expect begging to get you much of anywhere, but then again, you and I both know that."

After he said this, Azazel simply left.

* * *

Azazel had not been gone more than ten seconds before Griselda moved from the wall and centered herself to the right of the Fallen Angel curled up on the chair.

"Rise."

Raynare did as ordered, albeit very, very slowly.

"Face me."

Raynare again obeyed the order with excruciating slowness.

For a few moments, Griselda stared hatefully into the eyes of the Fallen Angel, whose gaze exuded pure terror at the wrath of the enraged Angel before her.

Then, almost too fast for Issei's eyes to follow, the Queen of Heart's hand clamped around the Fallen Angel's throat.

Raynare's eyes bugged out in a way that was almost comical, her one good hand weakly striking the arm holding her to absolutely no effect as she tried desperately to get air into her lungs.

After nearly ten seconds of holding Raynare in place this way, the words left Griselda's lips.

"This is not comfortable at _all_ , is it, Fallen Angel?" she snarled, each and every syllable soaked in a raw, seething fury that the Jack of Hearts had believed her incapable of.

Raynare tried to reply in the negative, but the slender fingers wrapped in an iron grip around her throat made it impossible to get out anything more than a sound like a strangled duck.

"Just realize," Griselda continued, her voice still consumed by anger, "that what I am doing to you right now is truly _sublime_ compared to what you did to Issei, and what you were _planning_ to do to Asia."

Raynare's eyes weakly stared the Queen's down, the former's face beginning to turn bright red from the lack of oxygen as tears slid down her face.

"If you are trying to gain sympathy from me with that bawling, you are failing _horribly_."

Griselda pulled Raynare towards her, the Angel and Fallen Angel's faces mere inches from one another as Griselda spat her next words. "If it would not cost me my place in Heaven, Fallen Angel, I would tear you into a bloody mess right here and now."

With that, Griselda tossed Raynare away from her, sending the Fallen Angel sprawling onto the ground, wheezing.

The Queen of Hearts then turned to view her fellows in the room, and the rage left her almost instantly when she saw their expressions.

Asia's face was frozen in stupefied horror at the Queen's rage, as though Griselda had turned into a completely different person at the drop of a hat; the former exorcist supposed that in a way, she had.

Issei was clearly unnerved at the very least, his attempts to hide it not fooling the Queen of Hearts.

Dulio, for his part, merely had his eyebrows raised, a disapproving look in his eyes, and was the only one to speak.

"Feel better now?"

Griselda gave a small shake of her head.

"You never do after that sort of thing."

Griselda nodded, her expression shifting to one of sadness.

The Queen of Hearts took the moment to embrace Asia, whispering words neither the Jack or Joker could hear into her ears. Steadily, they could see the nun relax, evidently finding reassurance from the Queen of Hearts; whether it was from the hug or the Queen's words, neither Issei or Dulio could say.

After a minute or two, the Queen of Hearts released Asia, whose face had assumed a greater tranquility; Issei, however, noted that the fear was not completely gone.

The Jack of Hearts was so busy studying Asia that he almost didn't notice Griselda walking up to him until she stood a foot or so away, her limbs reaching for him.

Slowly, she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close.

Issei did not quite know how to react, and began hugging her back out of reflex more than anything else.

"I'm sorry, Issei," she whispered in her fellow Saint's ear, her tone having shifted to one filled simultaneously with warmth and sorrow. "I'm sorry that I said what I did when we first met."

Issei's arms squeezed the Queen of Hearts a little harder at those words.

For the second time in five minutes, and despite not really knowing why, he accepted an apology.

* * *

 _And cut._


	12. Hit or Free

_No changes._

* * *

The three Angels and single nun were quiet as they exited Raynare's cell, and it was only once they had left the magically-sealed area that anyone spoke.

"Issei," Dulio said, his voice a flat tone, "take Asia, go to Zebel and wait there for us. Let the Seraphs know that Griselda and I will be along shortly, once we get a little..." His eyes flashed to the Queen of Hearts. "... _discussion_ over and done with."

Dulio had never struck Issei as the type to command him, but there was no question that the Joker's words were not a request. It was an order Issei did not hesitate to obey.

"C'mere, Asia," the brunette said, opening his arms, which the blonde darted into without hesitating.

A moment later, the two disappeared into the cross of light that had become a fixture in the lives of all four.

* * *

With Issei and Asia gone, Michael's Joker rounded on Gabriel's Queen.

"That wasn't necessary, Griselda."

Griselda's eyes narrowed. "You speak as though you would not have liked to do it yourself."

"Oh, I'd have _liked_ to do much worse," Dulio shot back. "But I thought better of actually _doing_ it, unlike you."

"Then why do you care so much about this?" Griselda demanded. "We _both_ have killed numerous Fallen Angels, if you would so kindly recall."

Dulio's eyes narrowed. "Yes, but _I_ certainly have never choked a prisoner until they were practically blue in the face just because I was angry. She was no threat to any of us and you know it. It doesn't matter what injuries you leave, none should have been done in the first place."

Griselda did not have a response to that.

"Not only that," Dulio continued, "but consider who you did that in front of. We all know that you scared Asia half to death when you did that. Is that the image we want her to have of us? Is that how you want her to remember _you_? The woman who's friendly one moment, spitting fire the next?"

"She has already been excommunicated from the church," Griselda replied, slightly irritated. "The reason for it was plainly idiotic, but it does not change the fact that it happened. What she thinks is, whether we like it or not, ultimately irrelevant."

Dulio snorted. "If that's the way you want to think of it, fine. What about Issei?"

Griselda blinked. "What about him?"

" _We_ ," Dulio said, pointing to himself and then to Griselda, "need to be setting an example for him to follow."

"What do you mean, 'set an example'?" Griselda questioned, tipping her head to one side. "He already has more courage and spine than I would have dared imagine."

"Okay," Dulio sighed as he rubbed his forehead with his hand, "let me explain it this way. You and I were both raised in the church, and we were both exorcists trained from a very young age. Issei wasn't. He didn't know that a single bit of this world existed until less than a month ago. He's made remarkable progress in that time, yes, but he's still a fish out of water in a lot of ways."

Dulio barely paused for a breath. "I don't know if you've realized, Griselda, but Issei looks up to you. He looks up to me. _We_ are his examples among Angels – you may have noticed that he barely interacts with any others. We're not just his instructors, we're his role models, at least where Heaven's concerned. He watches how we act and what we do. He's learning from us whether he realizes it or not."

Griselda blinked again before she realized the truth of Dulio's words.

Dulio nodded, understanding the expression that the Queen of Heart's face flashed through. "We're his senior Saints – we set the example for him to follow whether we like it or not. I think we can both agree strangling prisoners out of rage is _not_ a good example to set."

Griselda nodded, feeling shame wash over her for loss of control. "You are right, of course. I suppose I will have to redouble the effort."

Dulio gave an appreciative hum. "Well then, since we're in agreement... I think we have a Saint and a nun waiting for us." His finger pointed upward.

* * *

As soon as Issei and Asia had arrived in Zebel, the former had dropped to one knee at the sight of both Michael and Gabriel waiting there; Asia awkwardly followed suit, doing her best imitation of Issei's motion.

Michael was the one to break the silence, his voice its normal, warm tone. "Rise, both of you."

The two did as instructed.

"I take it, then, that you are Asia Argento?" the Seraph said to the nun.

Asia tensed up, evidently unprepared to be addressed. "Y-y-yes... yes sir!" she stammered, almost terrified.

Michael gave her a kind smile as he strode over to her. "There's no need to be nervous, child. I am Michael; it's a pleasure to meet you." He gestured to Gabriel and introduced her as well.

"Th-the pleasure is... is all mine..." Asia replied; evidently Michael's words had done nothing to reassure her.

A moment later, all three Angels had pieced together why, and Michael immediately switched his focus to Issei.

"Issei, where are Dulio and Griselda?"

Issei swallowed; despite himself, he still found speaking with Heaven's leader to be somewhat nerve-wracking. "Lord Michael, Dulio said he and Griselda needed to talk about something, and they'd be here right after."

"I see," Michael said, nodding as he turned to face Gabriel. "You both were present for Azazel's interrogation of our prisoner, correct?"

Issei noted that Heaven's leader very pointedly did _not_ use Raynare's name.

"Yes, Lord Michael."

"What was the outcome?" Michael asked, frowning slightly.

"Azazel basically left her twisting in the wind after he'd heard what happened."

Michael nodded at this. "I expected little else from him. He probably believes that no punishment he could inflict would be as awful as what we would do to her."

"If it's not too forward, Lord Michael," Issei responded, "what _do_ you have planned for her?"

The Seraph gave a slight shrug at this. "Do you have any desire to protect her?"

"None," Issei said, burying a sarcastic reply; he hated that his mind had even had it ready.

"Do you, Asia?"

"I... umm... no... I don't..." came the nun's nervous answer.

Michael shrugged once more. "I see. Then, she may be executed."

Issei felt nothing at this news.

Asia, on the other hand, immediately cried out. "Sir! I-isn't that a bit much?!"

Michael's frown returned, much deeper than before, but it was Gabriel who spoke up. "She has killed a person and made an attempt on the life of another, all while breaking the truce between her faction and the Devils. Death is a punishment she has well earned."

"B-but... Issei's not..."

Gabriel cut Asia off at those words, though the Seraph's words did not contain even the slightest hint of irritation.

"Asia, my Jack was lying on the ground, unconscious with an enormous hole blasted through his chest. He had all but bled out when I arrived."

Asia gasped at that; Issei, meanwhile, shuddered at the forcible recall of the awful memory.

"Simply put, he _was_ dead, for all intents and purposes, before he was resurrected as my Saint. By our definition, Asia, this Fallen Angel is a murderer. She has written her own death warrant in my Saint's blood."

"That being said," Michael cut in, "none of that is yet set in stone. We still wish to consult the other two Seraphs in this matter; an execution is never a pleasant business, and I may decide that total banishment may be punishment enough."

Asia looked to Issei at that, clearly confused; he shrugged, equally clueless as to what this entailed, something Michael clearly saw.

"Effectively," the Seraph explained, "she would be turned as close to human as we can manage. Her remaining lifespan would be cut down to one century, her wings would be removed and her magical abilities would be permanently sealed away."

"She would, of course," Gabriel added, "be blacklisted by all the major factions – meaning no reincarnation by Devils to get back her near-immortality. And if she were to step foot into church territory, her life would be forfeit."

Issei gave a nod. "So technically, the punishment is death either way, just one version takes longer?"

Gabriel shrugged. "More or less."

"Did we miss anything?" came Dulio's voice.

The three Angels and single nun turned and looked behind them as Michael's Joker and Gabriel's Queen appeared in twin crosses of light and bowed.

"Rise, both of you," came Michael's voice.

Both obeyed.

"In response to your question," Michael continued, "you have only missed me explaining to Issei and Asia our current situation regarding the Fallen Angel. Neither has any intent of speaking in her defense."

"So," Griselda said, "that makes four of us. I personally believe she does not deserve the chance to live out life as a human, given the fact she was so willing to _take_ human life."

Dulio nodded. "I'd have to agree with that."

After this, Michael raised a hand. "That is enough on this grim subject. We have another, altogether happier matter to address, and it concerns you, Asia Argento."

Asia tensed up at this. "Y-yes sir...?"

"My Joker, Gabriel's Queen, and the Seraphs have pooled our thoughts on what we wish to do for you. It has been decided that we will bestow upon you the same gift granted to them – if you wish it, of course."

Asia's face was a blank, to which Michael cast an annoyed glance at the three Brave Saints in the room. "It seems our subordinates neglected to explain this system to you. For shame, you three."

"Our apologies, Lord Michael," Dulio said, his tone formal. "But we did not wish to get her hopes up or create unrealistic expectations. Besides that, Issei has barely had a chance to speak to her since she came back."

Dulio shot the Queen of Hearts a sarcastic look, to which she replied with an innocent whistle.

"Well then," Gabriel said, giving an amused roll of her eyes, "there is no one more fitting to explain the situation to Asia than the one who led the raid on the church, don't you agree?"

All eyes suddenly darted to Issei, who suddenly felt _very_ self-conscious.

"Well," Issei began awkwardly as he turned to face Asia, "the thing is, Asia... out of us five, only Lord Michael and Lady Gabriel were born Angels. Me, Dulio and Griselda were all _made_ Angels after we were born..."

"Are... are you saying what I think you are?" Asia gasped.

"If you're thinking that they're offering to make you an Angel, then yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying."

Asia was silent, too stunned to speak.

Gabriel pulled a thick box from her robes, opened the top of it with a loud _click_ and filled the quiet with her warm voice.

"I, Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphim of Heaven, wish to extend the offer of reincarnation to you, Asia Argento. You have served the church nearly since birth. You have had so much asked of you, time and time again, and yet you gave yourself wholly to our Lord's teachings despite never receiving anything in return. Your soul is kinder than most could possibly imagine, and you still follow our Lord's words even after your service to the church was ended under... less than positive circumstances. We believe it only fair that _we_ reward you where the church did not."

Gabriel withdrew a thick playing card from the box. It was about the size of her palm and more than an inch thick, with a completely blank white back that hid the card's value from the Saints and Asia.

"If, of course, you would have me as your King."

 _That_ snapped Asia out of her stupor, and she dropped to her knees in a near-perfect imitation of the formal bow that she and Issei had performed when they had entered.

"I-It would be m-my honor..." Asia stammered, overwhelmed by the sheer generosity she was being shown.

Gabriel gave a smile at that.

Issei noticed immediately, however, that it was not a happy one.

"Well then, Asia, I have one final question for you, and it will make or break your decision."

Asia looked up, confused once more.

Gabriel gave a heavy, sad sigh.

"Asia, would you still choose to serve Heaven as a Saint and as an Angel... even if you knew that God was dead?"

* * *

 _And cut._


	13. Time is Taken

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For several seconds, Asia did not react, as though she did not comprehend Gabriel's words.

Then, she spoke, her previous nervousness sounding altogether calm and collected by comparison.

"Lady... Lady Gabriel... I... I don't... I don't think I... I don't think I heard you right..."

"You heard me perfectly," Gabriel replied, her eyes shut. "God is dead and gone Asia, and he has been for a very long time."

Asia rose shakily to her feet, her gaze turning wildly to burn through the Saints and Seraphs. Her voice was steadily becoming crazed.

"No... no... _no!_ It can't be! God _can't_ be dead!"

The expressions of four of the five other people in the room reflected sadness.

The fifth's reflected surprise.

"Asia-" Issei tried to speak up, but was cut off by the nun wrapping herself around him, tears forming in her eyes as she looked up at him, utter desperation evident.

"Issei, it's not true, is it? Please tell me it's not! Please tell me this is all a sick joke! _Please!_ "

Issei wrapped his arms around Asia and gently pressed her head against his chest, trying to soften the blow of his next word in some small way.

"Asia, why would the Seraphs lie to you?"

Issei met Asia's gaze, and he could see, in her eyes, her entire world fall apart.

A heartbeat later, the blonde nun buried her head in his chest as muffled wails erupted from her.

* * *

Issei held Asia close as she bawled her eyes out, freely using his shirt as a giant tissue.

At first, he had tried to comfort her, but he had been stopped by Dulio laying a hand on his shoulder.

"Issei, she's just found out that the God she had spent her entire life serving has been dead since before she was born. Griselda and I both had similar reactions. I don't mean to be harsh, Issei, but I doubt you can relate, given that you weren't too faithful before you were reincarnated. Let her cry; she's got more than enough right to."

Issei flinched slightly at those words and turned away. He would never admit it out loud, but even that slight reference to his lack of faith had stung.

Asia's tears did not stop for even a moment throughout all of this.

Asia cried until Issei's shirt was completely soaked with tears, and even once the tears finally stopped, the nun's head remained in his shirt, as though trying to hide from the awful truth.

It wasn't until perhaps twenty minutes had gone by that Asia finally pulled her head back from the cloth, her eyes bright red and puffy.

"If God's dead... then... then... then..."

She never got a word past "then". Issei couldn't be sure why that was, but he could guess - either the thought had been banished from her own mind in horror, or she herself didn't know where her thoughts led. He could believe either.

Issei took a breath before looking to the Seraph leading Heaven.

"May I show her something, Lord Michael?" he asked, as one of his fingers, on an arm wrapped around Asia's back, pointed downward.

* * *

A few breaths later, Asia realized that they were no longer standing in Zebel; Zebel had a ceiling, not a sky of a purer blue than she had ever imagined. Her head began to whip about wildly.

"Issei, where-"

The nun stopped short, her breath and sobs frozen in her throat, when she caught sight of the city below the balcony.

"Welcome to Third Heaven," Issei murmured to her as she extracted herself from his arms to face the city below.

Asia did not reply, too enraptured by the sight of the city below to notice that the Jack of Hearts had even spoken.

For several minutes, Asia simply stared down at the ethereal, near-limitless home of the souls of the dead. She was fascinated the buildings, made of materials totally foreign to her world and constructed in ways that all her knowledge of physics dictated impossible. She was awed by the trunks of the trees that curled around the buildings, larger and thicker than any tree on Earth, and the grass that grew through the glittering streets. Flowers and fountains, trees and towers, an orderly chaos of the most beautiful kind.

But more than anything else, she was captivated by the people that lived in this beautiful landscape. They were unmissable as they moved among the natural and unnatural constructions, yet not one seemed out of place. Some were old, some were younger. Some, she saw with sadness, were children. All, however, seemed to be perfectly content as they played, talked, slept or otherwise enjoyed company, whether their own or that of others. A few took notice of Issei and Asia standing upon the balcony with no door, but aside from a few looks and children pointing fingers, most paid them no mind.

Finally, Asia managed to pull her eyes from the beauty below and looked to Issei.

He noticed she was no longer sobbing with her next words.

"What... what is this place?"

Issei looked her over, his expression neutral. "It's Third Heaven. Where the souls of the dead who've been brought here reside." He gestured out over the city. "You want to know what the point of our existence is, if God is dead? Well, here it is – guarding this place and letting the souls of the dead rest in peace. Guiding the church with God's teachings, maintaining faith, that's all secondary to defending this place. These people have earned their eternity and it's our job to make sure they get to enjoy it."

Asia nodded, her eyes drying before Issei's eyes.

"So then..." she whispered, "is it too late?"

Issei turned and looked at her, an eyebrow raised. "Too late for what?"

She turned to meet his gaze, her reddened eyes now filled with determination. "Is it too late to return to the Seraphs and accept their offer?"

"Well," Issei said, chuckling, "that was a quick switch. Think I'm getting whiplash over here."

"I didn't know about Third Heaven... I didn't know Heaven's real mission." Asia took a deep breath, evidently steeling her nerves. "Even if God is gone... I want to be part of _this_ , Issei! I want to help all of you! If I can do that, at least..."

"At least?"

Asia shook her head. "Never mind, Issei. Just, please, can we go back? I want to tell them I accept! _Please_!" She was, by this point, grabbing and tugging the front of his shirt as though it might make him concede a little quicker.

"Alright, alright..." Issei said with a good-natured laugh. "Come here."

A few moments later, the balcony stood empty once more.

* * *

As soon as Issei and Asia returned to Zebel, Asia had dropped into a formal bow.

After being permitted to rise, Asia spoke, her voice now more confident than Issei had yet heard it.

"Lady Gabriel, I wish to accept your generous offer. It would be my honor to call you my King and join the ranks of those Angels serving Heaven. I do not care if God is dead, I will still follow his teachings and fulfill his mission to the best of my ability."

Gabriel's face split into a wide, kind smile. "Excellent. If that is your decision, step forward, child."

The blonde nun took a deep breath, then took several steps towards the Seraph, stopping feet short of Gabriel.

"The process is a simple one," Gabriel encouraged. "and it should be over within a minute. All I need you to do is stand still."

Asia took another slow breath, trying her best to not fidget as Gabriel pressed the card against her bosom, all while wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

Ever so slowly, the card was absorbed into Asia's chest, enveloping the Seraph and the nun in a golden glow.

For a moment, all of existence seemed to freeze.

Then, Asia's hands raced to her head; she was only prevented from dropping to her knees by Gabriel's arm.

A moment later, Asia's palms left her head, her eyes looking into Gabriel's in confusion.

"Is that it? Is it done?"

Gabriel whispered something in the nun's ear in response, Asia nodding.

"Understand?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes, Lady Gabriel."

With that, Asia's eyes shut, squeezed tight in concentration for a moment.

A pair of white, feathered wings erupted from her back, and a circle of light appeared above her head.

The process was complete.

* * *

For a moment, Asia simply stared at her own wings, struck by awe at the new addition to her body the same way Issei had once been.

The next moment, Asia had practically tackled Gabriel in a hug.

Gabriel, for her part, did not mind physical affection from her Saints (quite the opposite, in fact), and gently squeezed her back. Her smile returned as she did so.

More whispers were exchanged, but Issei was too far away to hear what was said.

A few seconds later, his King separated from Asia, and it was his turn to be embraced. Again.

"What am I, a walking pillow?" he teased, earning a chuckle from Dulio and an amused sigh from Griselda.

"Thank you, Issei..." came the reply, causing Issei's slight grin to fade from his face.

"For what?" the brunette asked, genuinely confused.

"For everything!" Asia squealed, hugging the Jack of Hearts as she looked up at him, her wings wrapping instinctively around his shoulders. "If it weren't for you... I'd have died in that church... I'd never have met Griselda, or Dulio or anybody else! I have these wings thanks to you!"

Issei gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Well, I'd never have been able to do any of that if it weren't for Dulio and Griselda. You really ought to thank them, not me."

"Issei," Dulio piped up behind him, "she's right. She's got you to thank – _we_ only knew it was happening because of you. And from what Griselda tells me, you were ready to go in there alone to try and pull her out if we wouldn't help you. Even if it got you killed."

Michael smiled at those words. "I had heard, Issei, that you had asked for help, but not that you were willing to lay down your life to save Asia's. Most impressive, Issei Hyoudou; I thank you sincerely."

"I thank you as well," Gabriel added. "Thanks to your actions, an innocent life has been saved and reborn to new purpose."

Issei blushed beneath the weight of the compliments and did not respond; instead, he looked down at the nun in his arms, who had since begun nuzzling her face against his chest.

"Asia," he asked, his tone friendly, "what card were you offered?"

A happy smile crept onto the nun's face, after which she proceeded to unwind one of her arms from around Issei's torso and display the back of her right hand to him.

On it, glowing proudly, was a bright, red 9.

* * *

 _And cut._


	14. Selfishness of the Saints

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"So, the Nine of Hearts."

"Yep!" the former nun squealed happily, nodding and hugging him tighter.

For a few breaths more, the Jack and Nine remained embraced, then pulled apart.

"Well," Dulio called, "Asia Argento, Nine of Hearts... welcome to the deck of the Brave Saints!"

Griselda shot him a sarcastic look. "Do you _have_ to say that awful pun to every new Saint?"

Dulio gave her an impish grin. "No. But I'm going to do it anyway."

All the Joker received for an answer was a groan.

* * *

Once Issei and Asia finally pulled apart, Gabriel began to speak.

"Asia, I was informed by my Queen that you possess extremely powerful healing abilities. Would you accompany me to Fifth Heaven, please?"

Asia looked to her King and then to Issei, renewed nervousness in her eyes.

"Don't worry, Asia," Issei attempted to reassure her. "Nothing bad's going to happen to you – they probably just want to figure out what Sacred Gear lets you do that."

"Well," Asia volunteered, "Raynare called it 'Twilight Healing', I think..."

Gabriel's eyebrows raised. "Twilight Healing?" she asked, slight surprise entering her voice. "Quite the rare gift, Asia – though I must still insist you accompany me to Fifth Heaven to confirm it for the sake of our records."

Asia gulped. "What's in Fifth Heaven, exactly...?"

Gabriel shrugged. "Our research facilities." The King of Hearts raised a hand. "Don't be alarmed, we have no intention of vivisecting you or anything of the sort. A few tests will confirm it. You will not be harmed in any way, I promise you."

Her Nine stood a little straighter, clearly trying to steel her own confidence. "As you wish, Lady Gabriel."

Gabriel stepped forward and embraced her newest Saint. "I shall handle the descent to Fifth Heaven, my Saint; I will instruct you in the use of your ascent and descent abilities once the tests have concluded."

Asia nodded, and a moment later, King and Nine had vanished into a cross of light.

* * *

"And thus," Griselda said, smiling as the two departed, "Heaven has another Saint added to its ranks." She turned to face the remaining Seraph in the room. "If I may be excused, Lord Michael? I have several bits of work I must finish on the ground floor."

Michael nodded. "You may depart."

Once Griselda had vanished, Michael turned to look at his Joker. "Dulio, if you would? I wish to speak to the Jack of Hearts alone."

Dulio nodded. "As you wish, Lord Michael."

A moment later, Dulio was gone as well.

* * *

Issei tensed up as he was left alone with Heaven's leader, suddenly swamped by nervousness.

 _Calm down!_ Issei scolded himself. _He's not gonna bite you..._

He almost missed Michael's question.

"I have been curious, Issei – how is the situation regarding your raid on the church?"

"The situation's been resolved, Lord Michael," Issei replied. "I was called to talk to both Lady Leviathan and Lord Lucifer's sisters the day after the raid. Rias Gremory said she would "let it slide", as it were. We _did_ get rid of several Fallen Angels and a pack of rogue exorcists in their territory, after all."

"I see," Michael said. "How have your relations been with the Devils in your town?"

"Well..." Issei started without much idea of how exactly to phrase things. "I... uh, well, the first day didn't go so well. I got called into the Student Council office and I ended up revealing I knew they were Devils... yeah, not too smart, I know. Anyway, they called me to the old school building where Rias runs her own club. Once I got out there, I told them where I'd been, and... well, they didn't believe me until I showed them my wings. Everyone left in a bad mood, I'll just put it that way. The day after, I happened to catch Sona after the last bell. We headed back to the club room and we pretty much started over with each other. We chit-chatted, got to know each other, that kind of thing."

Issei was careful to keep his terminology vague, not entirely sure if he should reveal that he had explained the Brave Saint system to the Devils there.

Michael, for his part, caught on to this immediately, but decided against bringing it up.

 _He could not possibly have revealed anything the Devil Kings are not already aware of..._

Michael gave an understanding hum. "What happened?"

Issei shrugged. "Well, once we'd loosened up with each other, Rias invited me to join her club. I refused."

Michael's eyebrows raised. "Why was that, Issei?"

Issei felt his chest tense up, and fear that he might have done something to anger Michael jumped through his mind, irrational though it was.

"Well, uh... I remembered that her brother asked that we stay out of each other's way. I figured that getting mixed up with them, even just for a club, would probably just cause issues later down the line. Do you think I should've gone with it?"

Michael shrugged. "Were I in your position, Issei, I likely would have joined in an effort to bridge the gap between Heaven and the Underworld. However, it was not my choice to make. As a Brave Saint, Issei, you have more autonomy than you might believe at first."

Issei bit his lip. "I... Lord Michael, I don't know what you mean..."

Michael allowed a slight smile to crease his lips. "Issei, so long as your choices do not endanger Heaven or innocents, your choices are yours to make. We Seraphs have neither the desire nor the time to enforce our will on the Saints in our decks. In this case, your reasoning against accepting her offer is perfectly valid, though I must warn you that it likely created some repercussions."

The Jack's head tipped to one side, unclear as to what Heaven's leader meant by this.

"As it stands," Michael continued, "I severely doubt that any of the Devils genuinely trusted you even _before_ your raid on the church. Now, they most certainly do not. They will be watching the actions you take with interest, Issei."

Issei gulped, which Michael noticed. "Jack of Hearts, I say this not to frighten you, but to caution you. You were very lucky with your actions regarding our newest Saint. That luck will not always save you. Do not take action in haste if there is time to thoroughly consider your options."

Issei nodded quickly. "I understand, Lord Michael."

Heaven's leader smiled. "You are dismissed, Issei."

* * *

The next school day was a quiet one, given that Issei never even saw any of the Devils, save a quick glimpse of Sona's Queen.

Issei was almost looking forward to the brutal but mindless physical training, but when he arrived in First Heaven, Griselda was nowhere to be found.

Dulio, however, was there, seemingly waiting for him.

Issei slid into the seat across from him, and gave a confused wave of his hand.

"Apparently," Dulio said, shrugging, "you get today off if you want. Griselda's tied up with some church business, as it were. I suppose we could keep up training with forming weapons, but you've pretty much got that down pat, and I'm terrible at sword combat."

Issei was surprised at that. "You? I've seen how good you are with weapons-"

Dulio shook his head and cut him off. "I'm good at _forming_ weapons. Actually using them? I'm basically hopeless. My strength's in magic, thanks."

Those words tripped a trigger in Issei's mind, and he cursed himself for forgetting.

"Oh yeah," Issei said, "that reminds me. I've been meaning to ask you this, but... what do you know about fire magic?"

"What?" Dulio chuckled. "You really want to expand your repertoire that badly?"

The humor vanished when he realized that Gabriel's Jack was being entirely serious, and the Joker replaced the humor with a more careful tone.

"Well, no, Issei, I don't know much. I mean, I can manipulate fire without an issue, but that's not because I know fire magic. It's because of Zenith Tempest – and I can't exactly teach you how to use that, for..." He gestured to himself. "...obvious reasons."

Issei sighed. "Well, I guess it was a long shot. Thanks anyway."

Dulio's lips curled upward in a grin. "Oh, don't make that face. I don't know much myself, but... let's just say I know a guy who might be able to help you."

The brown-haired teen blinked. "Who?"

The smile slid off of Dulio's face. "Before I tell you that, I want _you_ to tell _me_ something, Issei."

Issei tipped his head to one side, his indication clear.

"Why do you want to learn it?" Dulio asked, the one word hanging in the air between them for several seconds before Issei gave an answer.

Issei shot the Joker a sarcastic look. "I want to get stronger."

"You could do that just by improving your swordsmanship," Dulio replied easily.

Issei began to become exasperated. "A mix of abilities can't hurt, can it?"

Dulio shook his head. "No, it can't. What I'm really asking, Issei, is _why_ you seem to have this obsession with getting stronger. What's your goal in all this?"

Issei looked at Dulio, his expression showing his irritation quite clearly. "So I can defend Heaven better."

Even as his junior Saint said the words, Dulio could tell that the brunette's heart wasn't in them.

Dulio shook his head again. "Not really a goal, Issei. That's your job description."

"Can't they be the same?"

Dulio leaned back in his chair. "No, they can't. You _have_ to defend Heaven. That's your duty as an Angel. Your personal motivator is what keeps you going underneath that weight. Issei, you do realize that _all_ of us had selfish motivators for accepting reincarnation, right?"

Issei blinked, surprised. "You didn't do it for the honor?"

The former exorcist chuckled. "Not a chance. Sure, it _was_ an honor to be offered the chance, but we all had our own reasons. I wanted to reach the souls of the children in Heaven. Asia's admitted that she wanted to prove she wasn't a heretic, in addition to wanting to preserve the beauty of Third Heaven. Even you had one - you wanted to redeem yourself, right?"

Issei nodded, biting his lower lip at the painful memory flooding back to his mind.

"Unfortunately, Issei, "Earn redemption" isn't much of a goal; it's too vague. What's your _personal_ motive? The reason you put the effort in and push yourself?"

After several seconds, Issei gave a vague "I don't know."

Dulio picked up once more that Issei was hiding _something_ , and a small lump of dread began to form in the Joker's throat as he remembered how prone Issei was to criticizing himself during his lessons. An alarming conclusion began to form, but Dulio did not bring it up.

Instead, he simply said, "Issei, you ought to figure out what that is."

"Are you going to tell me who that guy you mentioned before was or not?"

Michael's Joker shook his head. "No. Not until he agrees, at least. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Dulio vanished into a cross of light.

* * *

For several minutes, Issei sat there, staring at his own left palm.

Issei's words had been a lie, something to pacify those who'd ask those sorts of questions of him. Dulio had given up, thankfully; Issei was unaware of how thoroughly he'd been read.

In truth, his goal was exceptionally simple, but he could never admit it to his fellow Saints.

How could he ever tell them how afraid he was? How could he ever tell them his fears of being how he saw himself?

* * *

When Dulio reappeared, Issei gave a quick sentence. "So, did he agree?"

The blonde man nodded. "Yes, and he said he'd like to start right now. Shall we go?"

Issei stood. "Where are we going?"

In response, Dulio grabbed his arm. "You'll see," he replied, the normal, mischievous Dulio having returned in the meantime.

A few moments later, the Joker had dragged the Jack along in another cross.

* * *

A few precious breaths later, Issei found himself standing in Zebel, before Lord Michael; both he and Dulio immediately bowed.

"Rise, both of you," Michael said warmly. "And you may leave, Dulio."

His Joker vanished almost instantly, and once more, Issei was left alone with Heaven's leader.

* * *

The Jack of Hearts was spared from starting the conversation, thankfully, when Lord Michael spoke. "My Joker tells me you've taken an interest in fire."

"Yes, sir," Issei answered, his voice nervous.

"And why is that?" Michael asked, his voice curious.

"Well," Issei replied, "I realized that as useful as it is, Lord Michael, light magic is still just one form of magic. And after I talked with the Red Dragon Emperor, I decided that it would make sense to learn another type, just to make sure I have multiple options available."

"I see. Well, then," Michael said, "are you ready to begin?"

Issei blinked as he realized the implication behind Michael's question.

As soon as he saw the expression cross the face of Gabriel's Jack, Michael began to chuckle. A few seconds later, he raised a palm.

Another second, and Zebel was drowned in flames.

* * *

 _And cut._


	15. Dulio's Power

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

 _WHAT THE HELL?!_

Issei's head darted every which way, watching the blaze snake all about Sixth Heaven. Paralyzed by fear, Issei's rational mind refused to work.

If it had been, the brunette might have noticed that the flames stubbornly refused to touch him or Michael, nor did they actually seem to be burning anything.

Michael's face, set in a half-grin, took in the Jack's fright with the amusement of a parent watching their young child become terrified by something harmless. Then, after a few moments, the Seraph waved his hand once more, and the flames vanished as quickly as they had appeared.

It took several seconds for Issei to catch his breath as nervous sweat trickled down his face. Once he _had_ composed himself, his head turned to take in Michael's smirking visage. Only then did the teen realize what had just happened.

"Lord Michael, that was _not_ funny."

The grin widened. "I would have to disagree."

"Shouldn't Heaven's leader be above stuff like that?" Issei muttered as his eyes cut sideways.

"That is for God to decide, and since I am currently acting as such, no."

"Isn't pride a sin?"

"No more so than lust."

 _Low_ , Issei thought grumpily, though kept his face neutral in spite of how much that had actually stung.

 **"Give up, Issei. You won't win a sarcasm contest with Michael. He's far better at it than you."**

The Seraph's grin had yet to waver. "I see one of you has some sense. Now, does the other?"

"Whatever," Issei sighed, conceding the snark-off.

"A wise decision, child."

"Could you sound any more smug?" Issei shot back, not able to keep one last quip from getting out.

"If you would like."

At that, Issei buried his face in his hands as the sounds of Michael's chuckling rang in his ears.

* * *

"Issei, why do you smell singed?" Asia asked, worried.

Issei was back in First Heaven, after several hours of training from Michael, seated at a table with Asia.

"Well, I've been trying to learn to use fire magic. Lord Michael's a great teacher, but it ain't easy to learn this stuff..."

As soon as he had finished laughing at Issei's expense, Michael's calm demeanor had returned, and the lesson had begun.

Issei had surprised both Michael and himself by actually managing to summon a small flame in his palm in their first lesson; the Seraph had admitted that he had expected that Issei would fail to manage that for several lessons yet.

This, naturally, had turned out to be the easy part.

It was as Michael healed the Jack's arms for the fifth time in fifteen minutes that he had made what was already obvious clear.

 _"Summoning fire is not the difficulty faced by most. It is convincing the flames to follow your command that makes most turn from this discipline."_

Issei looked at Asia. "Let's just say that fire's kind of temperamental."

He could summon the fire, but as soon as he did, the tiny inferno would then jump to something at random, against his attempted commands, and burn _it_ instead of his intended target of a block of wood.

And nine times out of ten, "It" was Issei's arms.

"Ooh..." Asia said, her voice full of sympathy. "Hope you're okay, Issei..."

The brunette shrugged. "Michael apparently knows healing magic, too, or at least enough to keep the flesh on my arms." He leaned back in his chair. "So what did you do today?"

"Lady Gabriel had me practice a few basic magic abilities common to all Angels," Asia replied, her tone warm with fondness for her King as she did so. "So umm... Issei... I'm guessing you understood me because of that trait of Angels?"

Issei nodded. "The one that breaks the language barrier? Yeah. Sorry I don't speak your language, Asia..."

Gabriel's Nine shook her head. "It's fine, Issei. It's a very nice ability to have."

Gabriel's Jack smiled at her. "I'll say. Now you'll never have to worry about not being understood ever again."

Asia gave a giggle. "Thanks, Issei."

Issei shrugged once more. "Don't thank me, Asia. I might have brought you here, but Lady Gabriel's the one who made you her Nine."

* * *

The next few days proceeded similarly to Wednesday; Issei, rather than being physically trained by Griselda, worked himself to the bone trying and failing to control the flames. There was the occasional, tiny sign of progress, such as the fact that the flames hesitated for just a moment before burning his arm, but that was all.

Despite this, Michael admitted to Issei that he was somewhat surprised; according to the Seraph, the teen was progressing his knowledge of fire magic far more rapidly than Michael had anticipated.

"I believe it may have to do with you being the host of the Red Dragon Emperor," he had said.

When Issei had asked the dragon about this, Ddraig had given the verbal equivalent of a shrug. **"He may be right. I have no idea, Issei; amazingly enough I'm not a talking encyclopedia. Most of this is as uncharted territory to me as it is to you."**

The teen hadn't bothered asking the dragon too many questions about fire magic after that.

School, meanwhile, had almost completely returned to how Issei remembered it being prior to his reincarnation. He barely saw the Devils in the Academy for the rest of the week, and only ones from Sona's peerage; Rias', by contrast, had seemingly vanished into thin air.

* * *

It was at the tail end of Saturday, just after Issei had finished things with Michael, that Gabriel's Jack got the chance to speak with the Nine of Hearts in First Heaven again. As always, they were seated at one of the tables within. None of the other Angels paid them much mind; each one of the two Saints had quickly become just another face in the crowd, which suited both of them fine.

"Curious, Asia," Issei said, "what have you been doing the last few days?"

"Well," the former nun replied, her voice more relaxed than Issei had ever heard, "I've been training Twilight Healing with Lord Raphael in Fourth Heaven."

"You don't say?" Issei replied, mildly surprised. "I've never met him. What's he like?"

Asia gave a happy smile. "He's really nice. Very relaxed about formalities. He doesn't even make me call him "Lord"."

Issei grinned. "I'm getting the idea that all the Seraphs are pretty nice people. Guess it comes with the territory, being Angels and all."

"Seems like it," Asia agreed, shrugging. "The other Saints are really nice, too."

"Oh yeah," Issei said, "about that. Have you seen Griselda the last few days?"

Asia shook her head.

The brunette scratched his head. "Well, Dulio said a few days ago that she was busy with church work of some kind." He chuckled. "My body's appreciated the rest."

Asia giggled. "I've heard from Dulio that Griselda's tough on you."

All she received in reply was a look dripping with sarcasm that might as well have screamed "No shit" throughout the entire hall.

"Well, I suppose I'll have to go through it too, don't worry."

"Thought I'd find you two here."

The Nine and Jack looked up to see Michael's Joker slide into a third seat at the table.

"Dulio," Issei said, raising an eyebrow, "when are we ever anywhere else in Heaven?"

The former exorcist shrugged. "Besides training? Basically never. Hence why I thought I'd find you here. Can't say I blame you; there's not a whole lot to do in the Hearts building."

Issei didn't bother to deign that reply with a smart comment.

"Hey, Issei?"

Gabriel's Jack looked up at Dulio, his head having come to rest lazily on his palm. "Yeah?"

"How's the fire magic coming along?"

Issei just held up his other arm, which had had all the hairs burned off of it by the ill-tempered blaze.

"Well," Dulio said, "you have to start somewhere. It's not like I woke up knowing how to use Zenith Tempest. Heck, at least you had Ddraig to tell you how Boosted Gear works. Probably made life easier, eh?"

"Ddriag? Boosted Gear?" Asia suddenly piped up, her tone questioning.

Dulio casually tossed a look at Issei, one that basically said "I don't feel like explaining this, you do it."

The brunette sighed. "Well, Asia, it goes like this. You know how God created the Sacred Gears?"

The former nun nodded.

"Well, you see, you and Dulio aren't the only ones who wound up with one. I've got one, too. One of the Thirteen Longinus."

Asia's mouth dropped open.

"I was born with Boosted Gear – this," Gabriel's Jack continued as he summoned the gauntlet for a moment. "Lets me continually double my strength and use the built-up power for different effects. A massive overall enhancement, a single heavy strike, strengthen someone or something else, that sort of thing."

"So..." Asia began after several seconds, "...what Sacred Gear does Griselda have?"

Dulio chuckled. "None, as far as I know."

It was Issei's turn of the three to be surprised. "Really? Didn't know that..."

"Well, she _was_ one of the strongest female exorcists," Dulio replied nonchalantly. "She's pretty darn skilled at fighting. You don't need a Sacred Gear or anything like that to climb the ranks as an Angel, you know. All you need is training, a bit of smarts and commitment to Heaven's mission, if you're really that concerned about increasing your wing count. Do keep in mind that it's unbecoming of an Angel to be vain."

Dulio winked at Issei at that.

"Since you're an Angel, Issei, you've got plenty of time for those things, though it's not like more wings makes you better or superior, anyway. Wings are an indicator of strength, not authority – Lord Raphael's Ace has eight wings and answers to his Five, who has half that many, because the Five is a lot more experienced. Sure, they all answer to Lord Raphael, but he's a Seraph. They have power _and_ experience."

"On that note," Issei interrupted, "how many wings do _you_ have, Dulio? Never actually seen you go "Full Angel", I guess you might say."

Dulio's face set itself in a half-grin for a moment, before he pushed himself away from the table, stood up and made sure there was plenty of room on all sides. Then, he released his full form.

Asia and Issei's jaws hit the table.

Ten wings flowed proudly from the back of Michael's Joker.

* * *

After Dulio hid his wings once more and returned to his seat, the conversation continued on for another half hour before Issei had to break for home.

As he sat on his bed, he thought over what he had seen.

 _Damn... ten wings... wonder what he's like when he **really** cuts loose..._

 **"Why are you so concerned with comparing yourself to others?"**

Issei's eyes looked to his left hand. "I wasn't, Ddraig. Just... _damn_! How strong do you have to be to get ten wings? That puts him almost on the level of the Seraphs, you know." A slight grin cracked his visage and he chuckled. "Wonder how close I could get?"

 **"Perhaps you'll do more than chase him. Perhaps you'll eventually run side by side with him in terms of power. Perhaps one day you'll _surpass_ him. It's not impossible, Issei."**

Issei chuckled. "I doubt it, Ddraig. I mean, not that I won't try, but Dulio's... well, the deck is a bit stacked in his favor, pardon the pun. I'm a guy with a Longinus and some lessons on weaponry. He's a guy with a much stronger Longinus and years of training and combat experience under his belt. He's probably going to stay ahead of me no matter what."

 **"Didn't I tell you to stop criticizing yourself?"**

Issei rolled his eyes. "Ddraig, there's a difference between self-criticism and just acknowledging reality."

 **"Even so, telling yourself that you won't succeed is going to do nothing but hold you back."**

"I'm being serious, Ddraig. I really don't think it's possible that I'll ever catch up. He's got too much of a head start."

 **"Three centuries ago, humans would have said that it was impossible to construct a machine capable of flying. Today such machines are a banal fact of everyday life."**

"What's your point? You sound like my grandmother."

 **"My point is that one does not grow or progress by believing something to be impossible."**

"Ddraig, I can't even get fire to do what I want," Issei said flatly. "Dulio can make nature itself bend to his will."

 **"Can the Joker increase his power exponentially on a whim?"**

Issei didn't have a reply to that.

 **"Issei, you and Michael's Joker have two very different sets of abilities. No, you will never be able to control the elements the way he can. He will never be able to do the things the Boosted Gear lets you do, either. Develop in your own way and carve your own path."**

* * *

Issei didn't bother going to Heaven that Sunday; instead, he decided to just spend it like a normal teenager, one who _wasn't_ an Angel bound into the service of one of the most powerful beings in existence and the host of a second creature of similar description.

He slept in. He played some video games. He made sure his homework was done. He talked with his family. He did all the non-perverted activities that he'd come to neglect since entering Gabriel's service, sans his homework.

Ddraig seemed to sense Issei's desires, because he did not speak to his host even once that entire day.

* * *

 _And cut._


	16. Ace and Jack

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

When Issei arrived in Heaven on Friday afternoon, he was mildly surprised to find Griselda waiting for him in the gathering hall.

As soon as she saw him, the Queen of Hearts stood and ushered him over, before they walked out of the hall and took flight towards the training building.

"Where have you been?" Issei asked as they landed on the cloud outside the building itself. "Haven't seen you since last week."

Griselda turned to look at him, and Issei suddenly felt as though he was under a microscope. "I have been aiding an exorcism, Issei. It required more time than I had planned, as the stray was surprisingly powerful, not to mention crafty."

Issei gulped. "Did you win? Everyone get out okay?"

Griselda nodded, and Issei felt an odd relief wash over him, even as the opposite emotion filled Griselda, the former exorcist recalling what Dulio had said to her before her junior Saint arrived.

* * *

"You believe him to be seeking power for its own sake?" Griselda asked, not enjoying returning to bad news about one of her best students.

Dulio nodded, seated at the table in Griselda's room across from the latter. When Michael's Joker had come to speak to the Queen of Hearts in her room, Griselda had known that something was very wrong just from his expression; the normally jovial and eternally optimistic Angel had appeared as though he was about to deliver a death sentence.

"That's how it looks to me," the Joker said. "You seen anything to contradict that?"

Griselda examined her memories of Issei's training with her. How quickly he'd learned and managed to even occasionally surprise her. How proud of him she'd quickly become, especially when he stood up to her over the raid on the church.

But she also remembered the frustration that came out of the brunette when he made mistakes. How he had quipped more than once that he felt as though he wasn't advancing, no matter what she, his swordmaster and instructor, had said.

 _If Dulio is right, then that lends some clarity... but that leaves a question open..._

She shook her head. "That wouldn't explain why he barely seems to train with his Longinus. If he truly sought power before everything else, than he would be training the Boosted Gear whenever he could. He doesn't."

Dulio's eyebrows arched. "You're right... I hadn't even thought about that." The Joker bit his lip as another memory he hadn't previously considered worth looking at suddenly crawled back across his brain. "When I brought up that he probably couldn't relate to why Asia was crying... did Issei seem to... flinch a bit? Or was I seeing things?"

Griselda nodded. "I noticed that as well..."

For a few seconds, Griselda left the silence hanging as a few puzzle pieces came together. Then, when they did, Griselda buried her face in her hands.

It was Dulio's turn to be surprised. "What's wrong?"

"Lord have mercy on all of us..." Griselda whispered, before her hands left her face and folded in front of her.

Michael's Joker tipped his head to one side, and he gestured for her to continue.

"Dulio, place yourself in Issei's position for a moment. He is a completely normal boy who, from what I can discern, was murdered by the one girl who ever pretended to be affectionate towards him, but only after he spent an entire date fawning over her. He wakes to find himself as an Angel in the service of a world that he had no idea existed. He then learns that he holds almost no common ground with the others who have been reincarnated. Everyone around him is far stronger and more experienced than he is, both in knowledge of combat and the mechanisms by which our world operates, and the first person he speaks to other than his King outright derides him for it."

Griselda had to hold back a tear at those words as she remembered the things she had said to him, renewed shame flooding through her mind.

Dulio's eyes had gone wide at this point, and he was kicking himself for coming to the exact wrong conclusion. "You're saying..."

Griselda nodded.

* * *

When instructor and student arrived at the training field, Griselda surprised Issei by going straight to the armory and retrieving a pair of swords.

"What, no physical training first?"

"No," Griselda stated in a very matter-of-fact way. "You need more training with your sword than your muscles. Three times a week, we can continue with physical training, but you are no longer in desperate need of exercise the way you were before."

"Okay, then," Issei replied, taking one of the swords.

Griselda had always insisted on training him with both a physical sword and ones formed from light magic in equal measure. Her explanation had been one of the few things she had not needed to further clarify.

 _"A sword formed from light has no weight. It is not the same as using one of earthly make. I consider it important that you be skilled with both."_

"Issei, you and I have trained long enough that you at least have the basics of swordsmanship in your grasp. What I want you to do from this training session and on is to utilize your Boosted Gear during our duels. The Longinus _does_ possess an ability called "Explosion", correct?"

Issei nodded.

"Excellent. Summon it and begin charging."

The brunette obeyed his senior Saint's order.

"Just curious," Issei said, "why the sudden change?"

Griselda nodded towards him. "Very simple, Issei. You have solid technique. What you need now is _speed_. I will not mince words, Issei – even most exorcists, fully human, are far faster than you. Training this way will help improve your reaction times and help your mind grow adapted to the furious pace of supernatural combat. More importantly, you should be able to learn these things far more quickly than most exorcists are able to, _without_ putting yourself in danger to do it."

Issei took a deep breath, then nodded. "Alright, then. Let's do this."

After several charges, Issei activated Explosion.

* * *

An hour or so later, Issei stumbled out of the arena, far more exhausted than he had been after previous sessions. Normally the sessions ran two hours, but Issei had collapsed, simply unable to keep going, and Griselda had called it off.

 **"Oh, I forgot to tell you,"** Ddraig said, **"use of the Sacred Gear takes a heavy toll on the host's stamina through continuous use."**

"I fucking noticed, thanks..." Issei muttered back, still not quite tired enough to refrain from being irritated.

The training had been far, _far_ more intense than prior sessions; even with the huge increase in speed and power granted by Explosion's charges, Griselda was still faster than he was, and she knocked him down over and over. Despite this, even as he trained, he could feel himself reacting just a little quicker, attack by attack.

 _Baby steps, Issei..._ he thought, recalling Ddraig's words.

When they returned to the Gathering Hall, Griselda had given her farewells to him, but just before she could leave, Issei spoke up.

"Umm... Griselda?"

She turned back around. "Yes?"

Issei bit his lip. "This is... going to sound a bit... out of the blue, but... do you have a spare copy of the Bible? I really should read that... just haven't gotten around to it..."

Griselda chuckled for the first time that day. "Issei, you are in the Biblical Heaven. It stands to reason that we might have a few copies lying around. Check your room."

With that, the Queen of Hearts vanished.

* * *

It had been weeks since Issei made his way down the hall of the Hearts building, but it felt far longer than that.

When he arrived within, Issei stopped to let out a slow breath.

 _Feels like it's been forever_...

He still remembered waking up in that bedroom, confused beyond words, and his initial meeting with his King.

He still remembered so clearly his surprise at Gabriel's revealing of his wings. How she had been so amused at his excitement. A slight grin crossed his features at the memory.

That was when he heard the rapping of knuckles on wood.

The Jack's head whipped around and faced the ajar door.

In the gap stood a young woman, leaning casually upon the frame, arms folded and a slight grin on her face. She was ashen blonde with a set of green eyes, dressed in the robes common among Heaven's Angels. Her pale face was framed by that same hair, tied in a tight ponytail that hung neatly down her back.

She was, as Issei was beginning to notice as a trend among the Angels, quite attractive, all things considered, and... _well-portioned_ , to put it in formal terms.

"Yeah? Come in."

The woman smiled and entered the room. "I take it that you're Issei Hyoudou?" Her tone was precise, yet at the same time quite casual.

The Jack nodded.

"Good to meet you," the woman said, nodding. "Mirana Shatarova. I'm Lady Gabriel's Ace. You're her Jack, correct?"

"Yeah, that's me," Issei replied. "Good to meet you, Mirana."

Issei was having a _very_ difficult time keeping his eyes on hers.

 _Griselda mentioned that Gabriel had an Ace during one of our training sessions... why are all the women Brave Saints really, really hot...?_

"My apologies that we didn't meet sooner," Mirana said, "but our schedules don't exactly line up. I'm mostly busy with the church's work, and you're not here that often, from what I understand. I'm usually busy on Sunday, too, so we didn't meet those two weeks you were here. I happened to have a free bit of time today around the time I was informed you would be here training, and I came as soon as I could."

Issei shrugged. "My parents would probably object to me moving here full-time. That's pretty much the only reason I haven't. Trust me, I wish I could a lot of the time."

The Ace of Hearts tipped her head to one side, somewhat quizzical. "Why's that?"

The teen took a seat on the bed. "Well, it goes like this: My parents have no idea I'm an Angel."

Mirana blinked. "Why not just tell them? I'm sure they'd be _honored_ to have an Angel in the family, if anything."

"Not much chance of that," Issei replied, one eye lazily fixed on Mirana. "They're more likely to be more shocked than they've ever been in their lives."

"Why?" Mirana asked, genuinely puzzled.

"My parents aren't exactly ardent churchgoers, I'll put it that way. I doubt either of them has ever opened a Bible, and they sure as heck don't know anything about the supernatural world. Neither did I until Lady Gabriel took me as her Jack."

"That's quite interesting," Mirana said after a moment. "I had heard the second part from Griselda, but I had always assumed that you had simply strayed from the faith at a young age, not that you were raised without it to begin with. Although..." A mischievous glint shown in her eyes as she grinned at him. "That would certainly explain why you can't seem to keep your eyes from wandering."

Issei felt himself blush bright red, and he forcibly yanked his gaze away from her, focusing instead on the door frame above her head.

"You're quite the little lech, aren't you?" Mirana teased. "Griselda wasn't exaggerating at all."

"Sh-shut up! It's not my fault they pick all the prettiest exorcists in the church to be Saints!"

"Thank you for the compliment," Mirana giggled. "Lady Gabriel wasn't exaggerating either; you really _do_ get flustered that easily. But I wonder if Griselda receives this kind of attention from you?"

Issei had no issues focusing on her face to send her a look utterly drenched in sarcasm. "For about a day. Turns out she has an _interesting_ way of fixing problems like that."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"Let's just say she's rather fond of running."

Issei still remembered the second day of training. How she'd added a mile of running to his normal two for every time he looked at her with _anything_ she considered to be lust.

The brunette had never run ten miles before that day, and he had no desire to do so again.

Mirana chewed on this, her face slowly returning to its normal expression, and her tone returning to its initial state. "You really are lucky that Lady Gabriel reincarnated you. Interesting that she chose you, of all the possible candidates."

Issei narrowed his eyes slightly at her, feeling tiny embers of anger begin to glow within him. "What does it matter? I'm Lady Gabriel's Jack either way."

Mirana shrugged. "That you are. I didn't mean any judgment by it, just that I found it interesting. However, I still question why you can't just tell your parents about your reincarnation."

Issei looked at her like the Ace of Hearts had suddenly grown a second head. "Okay, let me make it clear why I'm not telling them. They're probably going to completely freak out if they find out what's happened to me, and I'm not sure they'll be able to handle it. That's if they don't call me completely crazy to being with – or maybe themselves."

Mirana raised an eyebrow at those words. "If you'd like help in telling them, Issei, I would be more than willing to give it to you. I'm quite good at calming people down."

Issei shook his head. "I can't. They just got me back, they don't need to know the strings..."

Mirana's head tipped to one side. "Just got you back? Strings?"

Issei sighed, not wanting to go through this song and dance yet again, but he knew that Mirana had every reason to be curious; she'd been locked out of the loop and now held some concern for her fellow Saint.

"Well," he said reluctantly, "it goes like this. I went on a date with a girl who turned out to be a Fallen Angel. She murdered me at the end of it."

Mirana gasped lightly, and Issei shook his head once again. "If you're wondering, that Fallen Angel is the same one who's locked up in Second Heaven right now. Anyway, Lady Gabriel saved me for reasons I'm not entirely sure of and I spent two weeks in Heaven while the Seraphs got things sorted out for me. My parents were so worried about me that completely broke down when they saw me again; they didn't even question my alibi, which in hindsight wasn't very good."

For a moment, Mirana was silent. Then, she nodded, eyes shut.

"I see," she said, her voice quiet. "I apologize, Issei - both for my assumptions and making you recall that."

Issei raised a hand. "Don't worry about it." He turned back to the bookshelf and pulled off a copy of the good book to read that night.

Just before he could leave, however, Mirana suddenly snapped her fingers.

"Ah! I almost forgot what I actually came here to tell you."

Issei's head snapped back to her. "What?"

"That Fallen Angel in Second Heaven? Apparently she's been asking for you lately. And what you've told me would definitely explain why."

* * *

 _And cut._


	17. Begging Chances

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For a moment, Issei just stared at her, trying to get his mouth working.

When he did, he could only force a single word from between his jaws: "Why?"

Mirana shrugged. "I've no idea. She's apparently been begging to see you and speak with you for two days now."

Issei gritted his teeth at that. "So, when do they want me to...?"

The Ace of Hearts gave a wave of her hand. "They don't care if you do or don't, Issei. No Angel in Heaven would force you to have a discussion with the person who killed you, and no Angel in Heaven would fault you for passing on one, either."

Issei considered this.

"Anyway, I have to go. It was good to meet you!" Mirana said, her voice pleased.

"Yeah, same to you," Issei replied, a slight grin cracking his face.

Once she had vanished into a cross, however, the smile vanished, and a grim line crossed his lips.

Think it's time I set the record straight with her...

* * *

When the Angels assigned to guard Second Heaven had passed the message to the Ace of Hearts, they had not expected that the Jack would answer at all, let alone that same afternoon.

Yet answer he did, striding into Second Heaven with the air of a person about to attend a funeral.

He wandered through the darkness, ignoring the few other Angels who had come to observe the stars. They returned the courtesy.

Upon entering the "entry point", for lack of a better term, to the prison, the Angel on duty seemed to jump about six feet in the air; evidently, he rarely greeted visitors.

"Ah, err... uh... Welcome!" the Angel stammered. "Can I help you?"

On second thought, maybe this was his first day on duty.

Issei sighed. "Yeah, apparently one of the prisoners has been asking to see me. The Fallen Angel?"

"Uh... okay, you're Issei, then?"

"Yeah," Issei replied curtly.

"Okay," the Angel gulped, "follow me, then, please."

* * *

As the two made their way down the cells, they struck up a conversation between the footsteps that echoed throughout the maze.

"So is it true what I've heard?"

Issei turned his head lazily to the Angel he was walking next to. "Is what true?" He already had a very clear idea of which way this conversation was heading, and he was trying to restrain his already-building annoyance.

"You're the host of the Red Dragon Emperor?"

Issei summoned the gauntlet and held it just a foot or so away from his companion's face. "That answer your question?"

The Angel nodded quickly, causing Issei to sigh.

"What are you so nervous about?" the brunette asked. "Seriously, I'm not going to bite your head off."

The guard gulped again. "S-sorry... just... recently reincarnated a few days ago... still kind of nervous..."

Issei blinked. "You're a Brave Saint, too?"

The guard nodded. "Yeah... I'm uh... Lord Raziel's Nine. You were just reincarnated a couple of months ago yourself, right?" the Angel asked, his tone having shifted to the curious.

Issei nodded. "Yeah, something like that. Hard to believe with all the crap that's happened since then."

"Curious," the Angel inquired, "what do you want to happen to this prisoner in particular?"

Issei shrugged. "I don't really care what they do with her, so long as she can't hurt anyone else."

"Anyone else?" the Angel questioned.

Issei sighed, not enjoying the revisit this subject for the second time in half an hour. "That Fallen Angel murdered me and tried to kill the Nine of Hearts."

The Angel on duty remained quiet after that.

When they arrived at the cell, the Angel walking with him didn't bother trying to talk him out of it. Instead, he simply opened the cell and let the Jack of Hearts in.

* * *

The cell lay exactly as Issei remembered it; the drab coloration, the spartan furnishings, the complete lack of warmth or hope.

And it had clearly affected Raynare.

The once-adorable Fallen Angel was now dirty, disheveled and appeared to be going mad as Issei leaned against the door.

Yet as Raynare looked up, Issei could see, even from across the thirty foot cell, a small glint of false hope in her eyes.

"You came..." Raynare said, her voice barely above a whisper, Issei barely catching her words.

"Yeah. Now, what do you want?"

Issei didn't need to ask that question, of course; with as much of a coward as Raynare was, he knew that she'd called him here to beg him to save her. He was already running over possible tricks she might use to try to convince him, raw contempt for the woman before him flooding his body.

"I... I wanted to say I'm sorry, Issei..."

"Funny how you seemed to grow a conscience right after you found out that you might be executed soon," Issei said, his voice bored.

"Issei, I mean it! I'm sorry!"

Issei shrugged. "Okay. And?"

"Please, Issei! Please don't do this!"

"Don't do what? I'm not doing anything. You would probably be a lot happier if I was."

"Don't abandon me like this! I care about you!"

"You've got a weird way of showing it," Issei replied, his voice nonchalant. "Maybe it's a Fallen Angel thing, but I've never met anyone who'd call killing your date and telling them to blame God to be the sort of thing you do to a person you love."

"Issei! It wasn't my fault! I was forced to do it!"

Issei stared at her, raising an eyebrow at Raynare as she sat cross-legged on the bed.

"And?"

Raynare blinked. "What do you mean 'and'? It's not my fault, I never would've killed you if they hadn't made me!"'

"And I don't care."

"I-"

Issei didn't bother letting her get out the next sentence. "I don't care if you were forced to do anything, I really don't."

Raynare began to weep at those words.

"Wow... you really are pathetic," Issei said, his voice deadpan. "Cut the waterworks, you won't get any more sympathy from me than you got from Griselda."

The bawling did not cease, and Issei ground on, ignoring it.

"But for the sake of argument, let's just pretend that you were coerced into doing that to me. Do you think I care why you rammed a spear through my chest and then tried to kill Asia for her Sacred Gear?"

"I... I..."

Issei shook his head. "No, I don't care why you did those things – I care that you did them. You've got no one to blame but yourself for this mess, and now you get to suffer the consequences. Hope it was worth it, Raynare."

He turned to leave.

"Yuuma!" she suddenly cried. "Issei, I'm Yuuma!"

"Nope."

The word was a death knell, a final, cold-blooded condemnation, spoken in the casual manner Issei might use when ordering a sandwich.

"You're Raynare, the little Fallen Angel who murdered me for no reason and then tried to kill Asia Argento. Neither one of us did you any wrong."

Issei turned to leave, but Raynare refused to let him leave on that note.

"I... did like our date..."

Issei shrugged. "So did I, right up until you skewered me on a spear."

"Issei!" Raynare screamed. "What do you want me to do or say! I don't care what it is! I'll do it! Please don't let them do this!"

At those words, a slight smile cracked his face; watching her wail in despair was quite the enjoyable spectacle for him.

"What you're feeling right now? The helplessness, the _fear_? You put me there once." The smile widened further. "Doesn't feel so good, does it?"

"Issei! I'll do anything!" Raynare howled. "Please! You have to listen to me!"

Issei turned his head halfway, to look at her in profile.

"You'll do anything, you say?"

Raynare felt a tiny bit of hope flare through her. "Yes! Anything!"

Issei shrugged once again. "Well, would you do one thing?"

Raynare began nodding excitedly. "Yes, Issei! Yes, I will! What is it?"

Issei let out a single, humorless chuckle. "Would you die for me, Raynare?"

With that, Issei walked out and slammed the door, leaving the weeping Fallen Angel to resume her slow descent into insanity.

* * *

 _And cut._


	18. To Take Rank

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

As Issei exited the cell with a slight grin on his face, unapologetically satisfied at having said what he did, he could feel the gaze of the guard on his back. He knew the Angel was giving him an odd stare as the Jack walked away. Issei could only guess at how much the guard had heard through the thick steel door, not that the brunette particularly cared.

"Feel better?" Raziel's Nine called after a few seconds.

Issei gave a shrug at that.

As soon as Issei had retrieved his copy of the Bible from the entry point, he returned home.

* * *

"So, you and Issei met one another?" Griselda asked Mirana, seated within the entrance area of the Hearts building. It was still an hour or so before they would retire to their respective chambers for the night.

Mirana nodded, a slight grin on her face. "He's quite a nice young man. It's nice to deal with a teenager who has an ounce of common sense for once."

"Indeed it is." Griselda gave a sigh and shook her head. "Quite the shame about his rather... lecherous ways, though. I have taken action to wear it out of him, but I doubt they were truly successful."

Mirana giggled at that. "They weren't successful at all, to put it gently."

Griselda's eyes widened, making Mirana grin. "Let's just say that my body got a thorough examination from him."

The Queen of Hearts buried her face in her hands at that. "It seems he and I will be having yet _another_ discussion over this..."

Mirana gave a amused shake of her head. "Honestly, Griselda, I don't mind. There's no need and it's not a problem."

For the second time that day, the Ace of Hearts was looked at as though she had suddenly grown a second head. "How is it _not_ a problem?" Griselda replied, her voice containing a hint of iron. "Lust is one of the cardinal sins."

"You trying to act tough might intimidate Issei, Griselda," Mirana said, giving a slight chuckle, "but it's not going to work on me. I know you too well. Call it a benefit of having been an exorcist."

"The point stands," Griselda replied, annoyed.

"Not really," Mirana shot back easily. "Sure, lust is a sin, but as long as he doesn't indulge the more lecherous desires and is actively fighting it the way he obviously is, what's the harm?"

"He is an Angel," the Queen of Hearts countered.

"Indeed he is," Mirana responded. "But he's also a teenage boy interested in the opposite sex. Is it any wonder that he likes a woman's body?"

"I don't care about that," Griselda replied, her face curling up like she'd just smelled something foul. "Regardless of his age, he is an Angel now, and it is _not_ becoming of our kind to act in that manner."

"Griselda, have I ever told you that you need to loosen up a bit?" Mirana questioned sarcastically.

"I lost count at approximately the hundredth time," Griselda retorted. "From the way you defend it, I should think you _approve_ of his wandering eyes. Should I take it, then, that you _like_ that sort of attention from him?" Griselda's face twisted into a smirk at her final sentence.

Miranda shrugged without a hint of shame. "Sometimes it's nice to be looked at like a woman and not an Angel. What do you want from me, remorse?"

"He's years your junior!" Griselda whispered scandalously. "You cannot possibly be seeking... _that_ sort of relationship from him!"

Mirana sent her friend a sarcastic half-smile. "I shouldn't need to clarify this, but no, I'm not. Not right now, anyway."

"I notice you do not leave it out of the question," Griselda replied, her voice thick with sarcasm.

Mirana shrugged again. "As Angels, we have truly _enormous_ lifespans, Griselda. Perhaps in the coming years, the embers of romance will kindle between us. I'd rather leave the door open than shut." A giggle escaped her as the Queen of Hearts sighed and buried her face in her hands once more.

It was true that in the year or so since the two had been reincarnated, Griselda had come to consider Mirana Shatarova an excellent friend. Yet that same friendship meant that Mirana's efforts at messing with her had plenty of time to be refined, and now Griselda invariably found herself falling for them hook, line and sinker.

* * *

For Issei, the rest of the week went by almost identically to how Monday had proceeded, sans his discussions with Mirana and Raynare. Issei would have an uneventful day at school, be pushed to his physical limits and beyond by Griselda during training sessions, come home and force himself through dinner and his homework before falling into a deep sleep.

Yet Issei was not disheartened by the exhaustion; in an odd way, he was actually beginning to enjoy his combat training. Yes, he lost every single round against Griselda, but there was a strange exhilaration at the sheer speed with which he and the Queen now crossed blades.

What was more, Issei found himself quickening even when not under the effect of Explosion, physically and mentally. In class, he found his mind working faster, solving problems put towards him quicker and with fewer mistakes besides.

No longer did Griselda seem blindingly fast during the few times he fought without his Longinus in effect; rather, she simply seemed incredibly agile. He certainly could not come close to matching her yet, but he could see he was steadily improving, which made all the difference.

* * *

"So," Issei said, "where's Griselda now?"

It was Saturday morning, and Issei and Dulio were seated across from one another in their main meeting place.

Dulio shrugged. "Attending to some church business on the ground floor. Presenting the newest exorcists with their crystals, I think."

Seeing Issei's quizzical expression, he clarified: "They're required for most people to wield Holy Swords. Don't know if you'd have that problem, Issei; you're the only sword wielder among the Saints who's never gotten one. I honestly doubt that Asia will be taking many sword lessons, given her skill with magic."

Issei chuckled. "So should I just head to Lord Michael, then?"

Dulio raised an eyebrow. "I was thinking we could just sit and chat for a little while, but if you want, I suppose you can go now."

Issei shrugged. "Mmm... nah."

The two chatted while tossing sarcastic quips at each other for the next hour or so, until another Angel came to the table and addressed the Jack.

"I take it you're Issei Hyoudou?"

Issei shot a lazy glance at the Angel, dressed in the normal robes. "Yeah, that's me. And you are...?"

"Deethelm Waldseemüller, Lord Raphael's Ace and former exorcist," the Angel answered, his tone somewhat disinterested. "Lord Michael wants you in the usual place."

Issei sighed as he stretched his arms out, before pushing himself away from the table and standing.

"Well, if you say so. See you guys later."

Gabriel's Jack vanished in a cross.

* * *

"So, that's the infamous Issei Hyoudou?" Deethelm asked after taking the seat the former had been sitting in.

Dulio nodded.

"Hear he organized a raid on a church full of Fallen Angels. That true?" Deethelm asked, his tone still wooden.

Dulio chuckled. "Well, "full of Fallen Angels" might be stretching the truth, but yeah, he organized the raid. From what Griselda told me, he pretty much said that he didn't care if it killed him as long as he saved Gabriel's Nine. Never seen him so worked up, and all to save a girl he'd met a grand total of twice. He might not have been a believer, but I'll strangle the man who says he doesn't have heart." The blonde grinned. "Pretty fitting for which suit he's in, I think."

"I see," Deethelm replied. "Any idea what Lord Michael might want him for?"

"Yeah," Dulio yawned. "Training with fire magic. At Issei's request."

Deethelm gave a disbelieving chuckle. "You're kidding me. He's been an Angel less than two months and he's already trying to learn to use fire?"

The Joker shrugged. "What can I say, he's got a flair for this, pardon the pun. He's all but mastered forming weapons and barriers with light magic, and Griselda tells me he's learning to use a sword faster than most exorcists she's trained. She's already got him using the Boosted Gear during their sessions."

"So the rumor was true?" Deethelm cut in, surprised. "He's the wielder of one of the Thirteen Longinus?"

Dulio nodded, smiling.

"You don't say?" Deethelm said. "Still, he learns quickly, I'd guess."

"That he does."

* * *

Michael cut things off early, claiming there was a matter he had to attend to.

When Issei returned to First Heaven, three hours and untold burns later, he found no one there that he recognized, and chose not to stick around the gathering hall.

Rather than return home, however, he instead went back to his room in Heaven. It was barely noon, anyway.

Once he had ducked inside the building and entered his room, Issei pulled off his shoes, then lay down on the bed and shut his eyes.

 _All in just a month or so..._

He still sometimes woke up and questioned if it was all real. Questioned if he had actually been turned into an Angel. Every few days, he'd wake up in bed, half-sure it was all a bizarre dream.

A quick glance at his own feathered wings, however, always dispelled the notion.

Issei reopened his eyes and stared through the top of the four-poster bed, his sore muscles loving the feel of the silken sheets.

* * *

The teen had no idea how long he remained lying there, idle thoughts jumping about within his mind, before a knock came crashing through his mind.

Issei gave a quiet groan and rolled off the bed as he walked toward the door, mildly annoyed at the interruption.

When he opened it, he instantly recognized the blonde-haired woman who stood there, and he dropped into the expected bow.

"Good afternoon, Lady Gabriel," he said, careful to keep his voice measured and formal.

"Alright, on your feet."

Issei rose, before Gabriel gestured towards the inside. "Do you mind?"

"No, Lady Gabriel. Please, come in."

* * *

Gabriel took a seat at the table in the room, then gestured for Issei to sit across from her.

Issei did so, his tension all too obvious to the Seraph.

"Calm down, Issei. I'm not here to punish you, I just want to talk."

The brunette took a deep breath. "Yes, my Lady? What do you need?"

"I have a bit of news that I think you might be interested in."

Issei blinked. "What's that?"

"You're close to earning your second pair of wings."

Issei's eyes flared wide. "Really, ma'am? Already?"

He wasn't quite able to keep the excitement out of his voice.

The Seraph gave a half-grin. "Indeed."

After Issei had forced the slight smile off of his face, he asked the obvious question. "Why so suddenly?"

Gabriel snorted, amused. "Come now, Issei. You've gone from a person who didn't know anything about the supernatural world to a Saint most any Angelic King, myself included, would be happy to count among their deck. I've heard a few grumblings from Raphael that _he_ didn't answer your prayer, and I know that Michael thinks well of you. You've learned sword combat at a pace rarely seen among children from _exorcist_ families, let alone an average person, you're already highly skilled at forming weapons from light, and you threw yourself into danger simply to rescue a believer, defeating a Fallen Angel many years your senior in the process. And even then, you didn't rest on your laurels; instead, when you had a firm grasp of light weaponry, you went to my brother and asked him to teach you how to use fire, and from what he tells me you've managed to make quick progress at that. Not to mention you've helped advance the cause of peace between the Three Factions, despite the little raid on the church."

Issei was trying not to blush, not sure how to react to being washed in compliments by his own King, despite his own feelings and doubts. "Thank you, ma'am... you flatter me... but... I don't get how I helped advance peace..."

Gabriel folded her hands on the table. "Simply put, Issei, you've managed to live in relative peace with two Devils with familial connections to two of the Four Devil Kings."

"I did that by barely interacting with them."

"Be that as it may," Gabriel replied, shrugging, "it's still impressive that you did all of that in a month or so. As I was saying, Issei, you'll likely be strong enough to have earned a second pair of wings soon. Before that happens, there's something the higher ranks of Heaven wish to do..."

Issei nodded. "My Lady? What's the catch?"

The Seraph leaned back in his chair. "Not so much a catch as a simple demonstration of your abilities."

The quizzical expression on Issei's face spoke for itself.

"Simply put," Gabriel said with a wave of her hand, "the Seraphs and high-ranking Angels wish to see your newly-acquired skills in action, including me. We've never actually seen you fight, Issei."

Issei blinked. "What does the test involve?"

"The planned _exercise_ is two phases," Gabriel replied. "It's not a test, Issei. You gaining a second pair of wings has no correlation to it. Anyway, the first is something of an... interview. We ask you questions on a given subject and the person speaking with you assesses what you say and how you say it. You are not told ahead of time what you will be asked about. The purpose, as you might guess, is to examine your ability to speak well and give reasoned responses under grilling pressure, _without_ the benefit of prior preparation."

The brunette nodded. "I understand, my Lady. What's the second phase?"

Gabriel began to grin once more. "A combat exercise, naturally. You're thrown against an opponent of our choosing, and we judge your performance in battle. Once again, you will not be told ahead of time who or what your opponent will be. Obviously, it's meant to assess your ability to react to unforeseen threats and think on your feet."

Issei let out a shaky breath at the description of the second phase, and attempted to alter the subject slightly. "So, have any of the other Saints done this kind of thing?"

To the teen's surprise, the Seraph shook her head. "It's exceptionally rare that we do something like this. As you're well aware, nearly every Brave Saint besides yourself and Asia were exorcists prior to becoming Angels. We don't need a measure of their abilities because we know they're exceptionally skilled on both fronts I just mentioned."

"So, uh..." Issei said, "Does each pair of wings come with the same amount of growth, or...?"

The Seraph shook her head. "It's exponential. Each pair requires significantly more power than the last."

"Do Fallen Angels have this same system in place?"

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. "Why? Are you thinking of joining them?" she asked rather sarcastically.

Her Jack gritted his teeth at that, and he shook his head. "I'd sooner cut my own wings off than let them turn black."

Gabriel nodded, feeling a slight bit of a certain deadly sin swell within her at those words. _He truly has begun to consider himself as an Angel..._

"In that case," she answered, "yes, as far as I'm aware."

"All right," Issei breathed, nodding. "So, when's that assessment?"

"Next week at the very earliest," Gabriel replied. "If it helps, I have complete faith in your abilities – though, if you feel you're not ready, there's no shame in refusing."

Issei shook his head. "Not a chance. I'm going out there whenever it's ready, even if I just make a fool of myself."

Gabriel smiled. "As I'd expect of a Brave Saint, and of you. Face the challenge head on."

"And I _will_ get fire to obey me before it happens," Issei continued, trying to hide his own gnawing fear of failing horribly with a show of determination.

His King simply nodded, still wearing that same smile. "A lofty goal, Issei, but not out of your reach. After all, the flames need only be convinced once."

Issei shook his head. "Something about 'strength of will', I think. Lord Michael mentioned something about fire needing a strong will to control... which I guess is just his way of saying I don't want it enough." His teeth clenched. "Don't know how I'll do that, but I will."

The King across from him smiled as she stood. "It's been a pleasure, my dear Jack, but I must return to my duties."

With that, the Seraph left Issei alone.

* * *

 _And cut_.


	19. Swords Gone Missing

_Time to annoy at least five of you._

* * *

It was several hours past sundown in Kuoh, but the time's passage meant nothing to the Fallen Angel confined within Second Heaven. Raynare remembered almost nothing of the world outside the cell in which she was imprisoned; she had fallen so very long ago that the memories were little more than a blurred haze.

She sat on the bed, barely eating the food that had been provided to her three times each day. The Angels on duty never checked on her health, physical or mental; if they had, they would have noticed her loss of weight from weeks of barely eating.

They would have noticed the crazed look in her face, the incoherent ramblings exiting her mouth.

But they did not check, and remained ignorant to her steadily collapsing mind.

Raynare had spent the first few days of captivity in simple boredom, whiling away the hours counting cracks in the walls or sleeping excessively.

She had been sure that Azazel would come and scoop her out of this mess; that was her right, wasn't it? The defense from punishment by other factions?

Then, Azazel had come. But he had not rescued her.

He had verbally torn her down, insulting her plans and goals and stating that he would be leaving her in the lurch to suffer the punishments of the Angels on her lonesome.

Raynare still could not comprehend his anger.

She could not have known that her target held the Boosted Gear; she had thought it was a simple Twice Critical, a Sacred Gear so common that one in every few hundred humans possessed it. Why did he not see that?

And the nun? She was a heretic, exiled from the church! She meant nothing to anybody! She could have easily disappeared without a blip on the world's radar! Her Sacred Gear was infinitely more valuable than the nun's own life! It should have been her honor to die for Raynare's cause!

It never even occurred to her collapsing mind that she had never mentioned her beliefs about Issei's Sacred Gear or the worthlessness of the nun; by extension, she was never able to understand that Azazel would have condemned her just the same.

To Raynare, the boy and nun were just another human, one of billions and worth nothing in the grand scheme of things; to Azazel, the boy and the nun were innocents who might well have been great allies to them if Raynare had followed orders.

Raynare no longer spent her hours amusing herself in preparation for a return to headquarters to be given her next assignment.

Now, the Fallen Angel spent the days alternating between crying and staring at the walls blankly, utterly nonsensical thoughts running through her head.

She remembered the face of Azazel, her boss who had left her to twist in the wind.

The face of that Angel who had nearly strangled her.

The face of the Angel who'd simply stood and watched her choke.

The face of that nun whose Sacred Gear was rightfully Raynare's – she'd taken her in, hadn't she? Wasn't anything that the nun owned hers by default?

But beyond those faces was another, the reason for all of her suffering.

Why did that boy have to survive? Why did he have to be reincarnated as an Angel? Why couldn't he have taken the hint and just stayed dead? He was worthless. He had no right to defy her whims. Who did he think he was to move against her machinations?

Yet he had. He had raided the church with that other Angel, waltzing in and taking what was rightfully hers. The arrogance with which they had rampaged through the church and murdered her subordinates was unforgivable.

Then that boy had somehow, through some trickery of the Boosted Gear, managed to defeat her and cripple her in the process.

Her mind focused on this boy. The Angel with two wings. The brown-haired teenager who was so stupid that he believed she was interested in him. The one who had then tossed her away like a piece of trash, daring to defy the one girl who had even given him the time of day.

And her mind nearly burned itself to cinders from sheer rage at the thought of him.

The thought that had crawled across her mind a thousand times in the last day did so once more.

 _Issei Hyoudou must die._

She was only drawn from her insane, murderous thoughts after another half hour, when the unmistakable sound of the ancient steel door screeching wide echoed through the room.

Raynare looked up, and into the eyes of the leader of Heaven.

Michael walked towards the Fallen Angel with deliberately paced steps, his full mantle clinking slightly with each step. Only when he was several feet within the room did he speak.

"Rise."

Raynare rose, the reaction utterly automatic. She knew that if she were to defy Heaven's leader, he could easily drag her to wherever he wanted without any effort on his part.

"Walk towards me."

Raynare obeyed the quiet authority within the Seraph's tone.

When the Fallen Angel had drawn close enough for the Seraph's liking, he had given another one-word order.

"Stop."

Raynare did as he commanded with pure fury in her eyes, which the Seraph regarded with the disinterest of a person noticing dirt on a road.

Then, quite suddenly and without warning, Raynare felt her wings, or what remained of them, rip free from her back, a blast of pain shooting through her as they did so.

The hollow clicking of Michael's steps against the stone floor rang through Raynare's ears, but she did not provide Michael the satisfaction of showing fear.

Nor did she provide him the satisfaction of screaming at the excruciating pain that lanced through her as the Seraph sliced off what remained of her wings. The pain vanished moments later, the wounds closed by Michael's healing magic.

She _did_ , however, scream several minutes later when the spell enveloped her, a circle of azure light appearing beneath her feet. Pain made her drop first to her knees, then to the stone of the floor as she writhed in agony.

As she did, she let out a long string of curses and threats and wails of hatred to Michael. In her mind, he enjoyed making her suffer this way, her pain-addled mind believing that the spell was simply a method of indulging a well-hidden sadism, the same way taking her wings off had been.

This, of course, was not the case; Michael took no pleasure in inflicting pain on anyone, not even prisoners whose crimes were as heinous as the murder of an innocent and the attempted murder of another. Yet he also felt no pity for her, for the same reason.

The spell was the simple completion of the process; given what it did, there was no way to render it so that it was _not_ unimaginably painful.

After several minutes, the agony ceased as suddenly as it began, and Raynare got to her feet, wheezing.

Anger flooded her mind, and she tried to form a spear to toss at Michael, not caring that he would deflect it with ease.

To her utter horror and confusion, the spear simply refused to come together; the light she had so easily commanded all her life now ignored her will completely.

Michael would fill the gap a moment later.

"Your magical abilities have been sealed beyond restoration, Fallen Angel."

Raynare stared at him, jaw agape and anger beyond reason in her eyes.

"In addition, your lifespan has been reduced to one century."

Those words, more than anything else, shattered what remained of Raynare's sanity like a piece of fractured glass. Her lips pulled back in a sneer, and she attempted to strike Michael, her deluded mind sure that it would cause him to give her back everything he had just taken; her lifespan, her magic, her wings, her hand.

This, however, was a notion as foolish as her attack, which Lord Michael stopped with the ease he might bend string. Clutching her one good hand in his, holding it fast, he continued to intone the nature of her punishment.

"You will be deposited on Earth. Your name and face have been broadcast to the Devils, Fallen Angels, and the church; your presence will be tolerated by none of them."

Raynare stared at him, unblinking.

"Live out your days as best you may, Fallen Angel, and take heart; you have been granted mercy twice. Many of your kind have never known it once."

With that, Michael marched out of the prison block, escorted by one of the guards on duty, and sent Raynare to Earth, never to return to Heaven.

* * *

Issei Hyoudou, meanwhile, was privy to none of this; he instead decided to spend his Sunday simply reading the Bible he had brought back with him. He had briefly considered going to Heaven to speak with his fellow Saints, but ultimately decided that reading the book upon which the world to which he was in service was based was more important.

As it would turn out, he would go to Heaven that Sunday whether he wanted to or not.

* * *

It was just after dinner, as Issei sat in his room, trying to squeeze in another hour or so of reading, that the bright glow suddenly engulfed his room. When his eyes jumped up to meet the glow, he felt shocked dread wash over him.

In his room was a brightly glowing cross, from which formed the unmistakable figure of Griselda Quarta.

Her face was set in a deadly serious expression as he jumped from his chair to grab her shoulders. "Griselda!" Issei hissed. "What the hell are you-"

He was cut off by the Queen of Hearts clapping her hand over his mouth. Not one to let silence reign, she filled in the empty space, her words utterly without amusement.

"Issei, Lady Gabriel wants you in Zebel. __Now__."

For a second or two, Issei stared at her until the message got through to his brain.

"Okay," he replied, his tone now even more serious than prior.

A few seconds later, the room stood empty.

* * *

The two Angels did not bother to stop at First Heaven as they usually did; they ascended straight past the first five levels to immediately bow before the single Seraph waiting there.

"Lady Gabriel, I have brought him as you asked."

Gabriel nodded. "Rise, both of you. Thank you, Griselda, for your expediency in this matter."

They obeyed.

Gabriel immediately fixed her gaze upon him. "I shall make this brief, Issei. Have you heard about the stolen Excalibur swords?"

Issei shook his head.

"I see. All you need to know is that they are extremely valued by the church, and they were stolen recently. We have tracked the swords to Kuoh, and two exorcists have been delegated to find the swords and return with them intact."

Issei's expression became quizzical. "So, why is this my..." he trailed off as he realized, before he gritted his teeth. "I'm guessing you need me to try and keep things from blowing up between the exorcists and the Devils in Kuoh?"

The female Seraph shook her head. "If you wish to not get involved, that is your choice – the two exorcists are well-trained, and not just in combat. Not to mention, there is little reason for the Devils to wish for a fight. They likely will want those swords out of their territory as much as the exorcists want them back. We simply felt that you should be warned at the earliest possible convenience that this is happening. The exorcists are leaving as we speak."

"That being said," Griselda suddenly cut in, "I would prefer if you _did_ involve yourself, Issei, if only for my own, selfish reason. You know these Devils better than the exorcists, and it may prove helpful to the exorcists if you were to facilitate communication between the two parties. Not to mention..." The Queen of Hearts gave a slight sigh. "I know one of the exorcists who was sent to find those swords – Xenovia. I can tell you from experience that she can be rather rash. She could use a person with some common sense at her back."

"You trained her?" Issei asked.

Griselda gave an amused snort. "More than just that, Issei – I am her legal guardian."

Issei's eyes flared wide, the reason for Griselda's concern becoming clear, before he nodded. "I'll keep her and the other exorcist safe. I promise you."

The Queen of Hearts gave a smile at that. "Thank you, Issei. You are very kind."

Issei gave a slight smile. "Okay, then, that begs the question. Who's the other exorcist?"

Griselda's reply was immediate. "A young woman by the name of Irina Shidou. She and Xenovia have been partners for years. They are actually both _your_ age, Issei." The Queen suddenly frowned at Issei's change of expression.

"Is something wrong, Issei?"

Issei kept scratching the back of his head as he replied, his face screwed up, clearly trying to recall a long-forgotten fact. "No, nothing's wrong. Just... Irina Shidou? I feel like I've heard that name before..."

He shook his head. "Whatever. I can ask my parents later." His face turned serious as he shifted his eyes to his King. "My Lady, when will the exorcists arrive in Kuoh?"

"Tuesday evening, assuming that their flights are not delayed."

Issei nodded at this, mildly surprised they were flying before remembering that they were not Angels and could not teleport; _he_ could not believe that he was already forgetting some human limitations, for all his times that he woke up, convinced he was not actually an Angel.

"Understood."

Gabriel nodded as well. "As you might expect, Issei, anything regarding that assessment will be on hold until this matter is resolved."

Issei nodded, having already inferred this but still being mildly annoyed by it.

"We have nothing else," the female Seraph said. "If you need to return home, you may do so."

"Just one more thing," Issei said. "Where would I meet these exorcists?"

Griselda covered her face with a hand and sighed. "Think, Issei. We have two faithful exorcists traveling to a new city. Where do you _think_ they might go first?"

It took Issei a moment to connect the dots, but when he did, he slapped himself in the face. "Oh, of course..."

He shook his head. "By the way, Griselda, how'd you know where my house was?"

The Queen shrugged. "Dulio told me. You _did_ register that information in Fifth Heaven's records, correct?"

Issei shook his head again. "I'll get that done."

Gabriel nodded. "It doesn't have to be tonight, Issei, but yes, we do need that information on file, in case you need help."

Issei nodded.

* * *

When Issei arrived home, the very first thing he did was pull out his cell phone and find the scrap of paper he had been given by Sona weeks earlier.

After dialing in the number, he listened to the phone ring, and within four of those, the phone was picked up.

"Hello?" came Sona's voice through the speaker.

"Hey, Sona," Issei answered. "I'll make this quick. There's a couple of exorcists headed towards Kuoh, and they'll be probably be here Tuesday night. They're here to track down some stolen Excalibur swords, not kill either of you. I'll try to make sure they don't try to fight with you while they're here."

For a moment, the line was silent, before Sona gave an answer in a very annoyed tone of voice.

"When did you find this out?"

"About five minutes ago," Issei replied. "I just got back from Heaven."

Sona sighed. "Thank you, Issei. I'll pass the message along."

The line went dead.

* * *

Rias' number was answered after an agonizing ten rings, and there was an obvious grouchiness to her tone; evidently she'd been asleep.

"What do you want? Who is this?"

The brunette rolled his eyes. "Rias, it's Issei. Two exorcists are coming towards Kuoh to get back some stolen Excalibur swords that have been tracked here. They'll be here Tuesday. They're not looking to pick a fight with you guys."

A sigh, extremely annoyed, escaped the microphone. "You didn't call them here, did you?"

"Negative," Issei replied. "I only found out they were coming a few minutes ago, sorry."

Another sigh. "It's fine, Issei, and thank you for the advanced notice."

The line clicked off.

* * *

Once the phone calls were finished, Issei went downstairs to ask his mother a question.

"Hey, Mom?" Issei called.

"Yes, Issei?" her voice called back from the living room.

After making his way there, Issei asked his mother if she knew who "Irina Shidou" was.

"Oh!" his mother exclaimed, clasping her hands in front of her before she began rummaging around the cabinet. "I know exactly who you mean!"

After pulling one out and flipping through it, she turned the book toward him and pointed at a picture of a young Issei playing with another child with blonde hair. "That's her, right there. You two used to play together all the time before she moved away!"

Issei blinked for a few seconds as the memories came rushing back.

"Is everything okay, Issei?"

He nodded before a half-grin split his lips. "Yeah, everything's fine... just... I always thought that kid was a guy."

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Oh, and one last thing:_

 _For Issei: Plume or smoke?_


	20. The King's Mercy

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"She was just _banished_?" Issei spat.

Deethelm nodded, Raphael's Ace and Gabriel's Jack seated across from one another next to the Queen of Hearts in the gathering hall.

"That would be the case," the Ace of Clubs replied, his voice its usual deadpan.

Issei shook his head, teeth clenched. "Why the _fuck_ would Lord Michael not execute her? She doesn't deserve another chance after the shit she did!"

Griselda had long since stopped trying to curb Issei's swearing, ultimately deciding she would just have to put up with it; it was a tiny price to pay, given that she liked Issei quite a lot. Instead of addressing the curses, she just nodded.

"Michael has the right to do whatever he likes, Issei," Deethelm said. "He's Heaven's leader, and while he'll definitely listen to the people around him, the final decision is his. Heaven's not a democracy, after all. Lord Michael is, for all intents and purposes, God. Whatever he says goes."

Issei sent a cutting glare at the Ace. "I still think he was wrong."

Deethelm shrugged. "Yeah, you, me, Griselda and every other Brave Saint, except maybe the Nine of Hearts. I know my King wanted to execute her, too."

"As did ours," Griselda added.

The Ace of Clubs nodded. "Yeah, well, there you go. Just about everybody, even his own brother and sister, wanted her executed, but Michael's word is law. You don't have to agree with everything he does, Issei, but you _do_ have to follow his orders."

"I know..." Issei muttered. "But I don't get _why_ he wouldn't just kill her off and be done with it."

Griselda sighed, signaling that she intended to take the reins of conversation from Raphael's Ace. "Issei, realize that Lord Michael is an idealist, even after millennia of running Heaven. He truly believes that there is some good in nearly all people."

Issei shook his head again, his face contorting into a scowl. "Not a chance with that Fallen Angel. She's bad to the core. She can't live in peace with other people. I'm calling it right now, someone else is going to suffer or die because of her."

"You won't hear any disagreement from us, Issei," Deethelm answered. "You're preaching to the choir here."

"So," Issei hissed, "if she _does_ attack anyone else..."

Griselda nodded. "You have full permission to finish what you started, Issei."

Issei nodded, his lips set in a grim line as dread wormed its way into his brain.

* * *

After he dragged himself through another monotonous day, his thoughts consumed by worry about what Raynare's next move would be, Issei was rather glad to see First Heaven's gathering hall spread before his eyes, dozens of Angels milling about or seated at the many tables, chatting away about one subject or another. A few looked up as he entered and greeted him, but most ignored the brunette's presence the way they would ignore any other face in the crowd.

Seeing none of his fellow Saints, he took a seat to await Griselda's arrival.

He had not been seated for more than a few minutes when the voice of Mirana reached his ears.

"Ah, Issei."

The teen in question turned and watched as the Ace of Hearts approached the table and sat down to his right.

"Afternoon, Mirana," Issei greeted her, trying to keep his eyes off of her.

"Good afternoon," she said in response, already noting his attempts to fight off looking her over and taking amusement in them.

Issei leaned back in his chair, deciding _not_ to bring up the subject of Raynare, choosing instead to distract himself with some friendly conversation. "You get another bit of free time?"

Mirana gave a wry smile. "Well, not really, I just wanted to come here to get away from the paperwork. Too bad it's just going to be worse when I return."

"Guess even being an Angel won't save you from bureaucracy," Issei chuckled.

Mirana shook her head, the smile widening.

"Hey, Mirana?"

Gabriel's Ace looked up at him. "Yes?"

"Well... I've got a question for you," Issei said, scratching the back of his head.

"Are you going to ask it or just sit there stammering?" she questioned, her voice amused.

Issei shot her an annoyed look as he gave the question. "What do you do when dealing with people from the church? The ones who know you're an Angel, I mean?"

The smile vanished as Mirana tipped her head to one side. "I mostly try to act natural. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you know about the Excalibur theft?" Issei asked, his voice turning slightly nervous.

"Of course. From what I understand, a pair of exorcists are being sent to deal with it."

"Did you hear that those two exorcists are being sent to _my_ town?" Issei elaborated.

"I see..." Mirana murmured. "Hmm... well, Issei, don't worry too much about it. If you decide to meet with them, they'll certainly try to be formal with you, but if you're not comfortable with that, just speak casually with them. If they don't take the hint, just tell them how you'd prefer to be addressed and I guarantee they'll talk to you however you want them to. Simple enough."

Issei nodded. "And... well, obviously, don't tell them… _that_ bit of information."

Mirana gave a sad nod. "I don't like having to maintain a lie any more than you do, Issei, but it's a no-win situation for the Angels, unfortunately..."

The Jack could agree with that, at least. His King had been very clear with him: If the faith of believers failed, Heaven would fall. Thus, it could not be permitted to happen.

"So, do you know Xenovia or Irina? The two exorcists, I mean."

"Hmm... I've met them," Mirana replied after a moment, "but I don't know them very well, no."

Issei chuckled. "Well then, this is gonna be interesting. Wonder if Irina's changed much..."

"You know one of them?" Mirana asked as her eyebrows raised, surprised.

Issei shook his head. "Not really. I knew Irina when we were little kids, but that was years ago. Heck, I thought Irina was a _boy_ until I asked my mother. And she definitely wasn't an exorcist when I knew her, unless exorcists are typically less than eight years old."

The teen started to laugh at the memory that had just come back to him.

Mirana, for her part, looked at Issei as though he had just lost his sanity. "What's so funny, Issei?"

"Well," Issei said, still chuckling, "here's the thing. When Irina lived near me, her family tried to get me to go to church with them constantly. Annoyed the crap out of me. Pretty ironic how things turned out, isn't it?"

Mirana's smile returned. "Well, fate has an odd sense of humor."

"Wonder how she'll react to seeing her old friend as an Angel?" Issei wondered.

Mirana shrugged, her face still in a grin. "Send me a recording of the meeting."

Issei was about to speak further, but Mirana put up a finger, before using her thumb to point to behind the brunette. When he turned, he saw Griselda entering First Heaven.

"Good to talk to you, Issei, but I think you have sword lessons to deal with. Enjoy yourself!" Mirana's voice was as sarcastic as he had ever heard from her.

"Well, same to you. Have fun with the paperwork," Issei replied impishly.

"I'd have more fun breaking glass with my bare hands, thanks."

* * *

After another utterly exhausting training session with Griselda, Issei spent the night doing homework and reading the Bible, trying to get through as much of it as he could before he met with the exorcists, not to mention distract himself from thoughts of Raynare.

* * *

Every hour of the next day dragged by. Issei was called on by teachers to answer questions several times, and never once did he have an answer prepared; his thoughts were focused entirely on his meeting.

He could only hope he wouldn't royally screw things up.

* * *

"Mirana tells me you knew Irina when you both were very young," Griselda said. "Is that true?"

The Queen of Hearts had called off the training early that day, not wanting Issei to be too exhausted when he met with the exorcists. The two were seated in the entrance hall of Gabriel's Saint's building, killing the remaining hour and a quarter or so with a casual swapping of words.

"Yep," Issei replied, his face set in a grin. "We played together a lot as kids. I remember that she really liked those sorts of cheesy superhero shows. You know, the ones with tons of special effects, giant monsters, bad acting, that sort of thing?"

Griselda nodded, her face a wide smile. "I have seen a few of them. I admit that I find them more funny than anything else."

Issei shrugged, still grinning. "I never said you're supposed to take them seriously. I don't, that's for sure."

Griselda's eyebrow suddenly raised.

"What's up?" Issei asked.

Griselda gave a lighthearted laugh before continuing. "I just remembered something that Xenovia told me years ago."

"Which was?"

The Queen of Hearts eyed him with an amused look. "Xenovia told me that Irina mentioned a boy she used to play with when she was living in Kuoh. She described him as energetic and friendly, but that he always refused her family's offers to go to church."

Issei felt his face get hot.

"I was curious about this child for a short while, but I knew that we would never meet, so I pushed the thought aside." She leaned back and shot him a wry grin. "Interesting that I should meet him in Heaven as a Saint years later. More interesting still that I should become his swordmaster, and that he should quickly become one of my best students."

Issei shrugged again, mildly embarrassed. "Hey, like Mirana said, fate's got a weird sense of humor."

"That it does, Issei Hyoudou."

* * *

When Issei pushed open the church doors, he was immediately blasted by the old, musty scent that had long overtaken the old house of worship. Ignoring the slightly foul smell that assaulted his nostrils, he steadily crossed the ruined hall, passing the destroyed pews and sole undamaged one in which Griselda had been sitting weeks earlier. The pulpit sat as it had been left by two Angels in a desperate rush, pushed out and away from the staircase it had covered at an awkward angle.

As Issei drew closer, he could smell the awful stench of rotting flesh flooding out of it, and he nearly vomited.

"Boosted Gear..."

After two boosts and a use of Explosion, Issei was easily able to shove the pulpit back over the hole. As time passed, the smell slowly dissipated thanks to the open church doors and one of the broken windows providing airflow.

As he did this, he remembered the raid on the church. Dulio's display of power and Griselda's near-effortless defeat of four opponents at once were present in his mind, but what he remembered most was Raynare. Her taunting them. Her kidnapping of Asia and what she had planned to do to the poor nun. And of course, his fight with her.

Issei winced at the memory, a phantom pain radiating through his shoulder and dread washing through him anew. To Issei, by letting Raynare go, even without her wings or magic, the entire raid on the church had been for nothing. Now she was free to harm those around her once more, all because Lord Michael did not want to execute her and wanted to give her a chance.

Issei still held great respect for Heaven's leader, but the brunette knew as well as he had wings that the King of Spades had made the wrong call on this one.

 _ _Well, guess all that's left is to wait for those two to show...__

After a thought, he charged up again, then used Explosion once more. Upon doing so, he dragged the pew behind the pulpit and flopped into the seat before returning his arm to normal.

 ** **"So, you intend to meet with them?"****

Issei's eyes lazily wandered up the ceiling. "No, I just came to this church because I thought it'd be a fun trip down memory lane."

 ** **"I question if this is a good idea, Issei. Gabriel even said that you don't have to get involved if you don't want to."****

Issei sighed. "Ddraig, I promised Griselda I'd protect them. She's the Queen of Hearts and I'm the Jack. We're both Saints and I'm not going to break my promise to her. I owe her too much."

 ** **"**** ** **If they're exorcists, they're quite capable of protecting themselves**** ** **."****

"And maybe I want to see Irina again. Did you think of that? Catching up seems like it'd be fun."

 ** **"The dynamic between yourself and her will not be the one that existed when you were children. She was not an exorcist and you were not an Angel."****

The Jack frowned at that. "I don't get why you're so hung up on this. I set up a meeting, talk with Irina and maybe this Xenovia she's coming with, help them find the swords, I see them back to the airport, done. With any luck, it's some low-ranking rogue exorcist who got pissy over being excommunicated. What's to worry about?"

 ** **"Famous last words."****

* * *

"No, unfortunately," Issei's mother said to the two guests seated on the couch. "Issei isn't here at the moment. He left after dinner, said something about arranging the next club meeting."

"Club meeting?" Irina asked, her voice curious.

"Well," the older woman replied, "he apparently founded a Bible study club at his school after the... incident..."

"What was that?" came the deadpan voice of Irina's compatriot.

Issei's mother gulped, and the blue-haired young woman swore she saw the Hyoudou matriarch forcing back a tear.

"Well, you see... about a month ago... Issei just… _ _vanished__. We don't know why or anything like that. Apparently he got on a bus and wound up in a different city without intending to and couldn't get home..."

Her face brightened up. "Then, a couple of weeks later, the priest he'd been living with brought him back. Apparently he took Issei in and gave him a bit of a new perspective on life – would you believe he was a total pervert up until last month? Then he comes back and it's like we got a new son!"

Xenovia and Irina looked at each other for the briefest moment, and both could tell the other could see just how flimsy this story was.

They did not, however, say anything about this. Instead, the two played along with the story, laughing and joking with Issei's mother.

After a cup or two of tea, the two gave a polite thanks for allowing them into her home and excused themselves, walking out under the swiftly-darkening sky.

* * *

The two were silent for the majority of the walk, only speaking once they were within half a mile of the church.

"So," Xenovia said in her usual deadpan voice, "that story was a complete fabrication. Not a very good one, either."

Irina nodded. "What I don't get is how Issei's mom didn't see through it. Maybe she's just not letting herself think about it too much?"

Her fellow exorcist nodded. "That seems the most likely scenario. They're probably so grateful to have their son back that they would have accepted any explanation."

Irina hummed an agreement. "What do you think really happened?"

"Well..." Xenovia murmured, rubbing her chin thoughtfully, "we know there are two high-class Devils in this town, so it's possible..."

Irina looked away from her companion at the unspoken implication, and clasped her hands in front of her. "Please, Lord, please don't let Issei have become a Devil..."

"Irina," Xenovia chastised her gently, "if he's become a Devil, then why would he claim to be working on Bible studies, of all things? And why would he claim that he'd been staying with a priest for a full fortnight?"

Xenovia's fellow exorcist shook her head. "You're right," she said, shaky confidence entering her voice. "That _wouldn't_ make sense... though, that leaves the question of what actually happened..."

Xenovia shrugged. "Well, if we find him, we can ask him. At swordpoint, if necessary."

Irina turned and looked at the blue-haired young woman, surprise etching her face. "Xenovia! That's a bit extreme, don't you think?"

Irina's confidante met her gaze. "If he has nothing to hide, he has nothing to fear. If he does, then we have good reason to use threats of force. I never said he couldn't potentially be a spy for the Devils."

The blonde exorcist sighed. "Well, I guess you might be right... just, it doesn't sit too well with me. I guess I just don't want to threaten my old friend, that's all."

"Irina," Xenovia chastised her once more, "our mission is to our faith above all else. If we must take his life to protect innocents from potential Devil influence, then we must be prepared to do that. You knew that when you swore your oath."

Irina didn't reply, only biting her lip.

"Now then," Xenovia continued, "the real question is over that Angel headquarters mentioned as living here. Do you believe if we find them, they'll help us?"

Irina shrugged. "Maybe, Xenovia, but as we were told, we'd better plan for the idea that they want nothing to do with it. That's their right, after all. They don't have to extend their aid to us if they don't want to."

"Then again," Xenovia countered, "we don't even know if they know we're coming. Headquarters wasn't exactly clear."

Another shrug came from her comrade. "Well, we'll just have to pray then, won't we?"

"Indeed," the blue-haired exorcist replied as the church on the hilltop came into view.

The two exorcists were slightly confused at the wide-open doors that greeted them.

* * *

The brunette seated within the old, ruined house of worship gave a sigh as he checked his phone. He had been there over an hour, and the sun had vanished from the sky in the meantime.

Issei was just beginning to consider heading home, that perhaps he'd made a mistake in his assumptions when he heard the voices outside.

"- just have to pray then, won't we?"

 _ _Well, guess that's them...__

Issei took a deep breath as two silhouettes were made clear in the moonlight-dappled entrance.

Each step they took into the church sent a loud _slap_ echoing through the enormous hall, their pace slow and deliberate; evidently they were scanning for enemies. They hadn't yet noticed him, his seat bathed in shadow the way it was.

"Are you sure this is the place, Irina?" one of the two said to the other as she pulled down her hood, revealing a short mop of blue hair.

 _That must be Xenovia..._

The other exorcist pulled her hood down, giving Issei a clear view of a blonde head with an enormous pigtail on each side of her head. "Of course. I did live here as kid, you know."

"Well," Xenovia said, "I guess we just have to get set up here, then..."

"I had heard that there was some damage here from Fallen Angels, but I didn't think there was _that_ much. What happened here…?"

"How should I know?" Xenovia shot back. "I wasn't here for whatever happened. You'll have to find someone who was if you want to know."

"How about I fill you in?" Issei called.

The two exorcists jumped about ten feet in the air before putting their swords in their hands in a mere instant.

"Put those down, you two," Issei said, trying his best to keep his voice deadpan.

"Show yourself!" Xenovia angrily called.

"Alright."

Issei casually stood from the pew, stretched his arms, and strolled over to the side of the pulpit before leaning on it.

"Xenovia, right?"

The swords had not been put away, that was for sure.

"How do you know my name?" the now-confirmed Xenovia snarled. "Who _are_ you?"

Irina suddenly gasped. "Issei, is that you?"

The brunette nodded. "Yeah, yeah it is. Good to see you, Irina. How have you been?"

Irina couldn't get a word in before Xenovia broke in. "How did you know we were going to be here?" Her voice was still hostile.

Issei snorted. "Where else would two exorcists go first? Headquarters told me you guys were coming."

Xenovia's eyes narrowed. "Headquarters?"

A shrug was her reply. "Heaven, as it's also known."

The blue-haired young woman's eye twitched for a moment before she opened her mouth once again. What came out was at a _much_ higher volume than before.

"What fools do you take us for?"

Another shrug. "Want me to prove it?"

"Indeed I would," Xenovia snapped.

"All you had to do was ask," Issei replied, his face set in a half-grin.

With that, he revealed his wings and halo to the two exorcists.

* * *

 _And cut._


	21. His Help's Conditions

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For a few seconds, the two exorcists stared at Issei, mouths agape. Then, Xenovia dropped to one knee, sputtering out an apology for challenging him.

Irina, on the other hand, let out a squeal and practically tackled him, though thanks to Griselda's strength training and his greater height to Irina, Issei stayed on his feet as Irina crushed him in a bear hug.

"Nice to see you, too," Issei chuckled.

Irina was giggling and speaking at about a hundred miles an hour, to the point Issei could only make out about one word in five – something about "faith, God's love, Angels" and other things, though Issei could not even begin to parse what she was actually saying.

Then, Irina calmed down slightly and stared at his wings, before she whispered something to him.

"Can... can I touch your wings?"

Issei rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Go ahead."

Slowly, the exorcist reached her right hand out, inching it towards the feathered appendage extending from Issei's left shoulder with the delicacy of a butterfly extending its wings for the first time.

After several seconds, her digits met his wings, and for a few seconds she just held them there. Then, she began to slide her fingers down the length of the wing.

 _So soft... he really is an Angel..._

" _IRINA_!"

Issei and Irina's attention were both wrenched towards the shriek of the blue-haired exorcist. She was still kneeling, but her gaze was solely on her fellow exorcist, her face fixed in a horrified expression.

"What are you doing?" she hissed. "You're speaking to one of God's Angels! He'll surely scorn you for acting like this towards one of them!"

The arms instantly released Issei and left his wing, a terrified gasp exiting Irina as she clapped her hands over her mouth. Immediately after that, she stepped back a few feet and dropped into a bow, tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I acted out of turn!"

All of Irina's training as an exorcist had gone out the window when she'd seen that her own childhood friend was an Angel, and the young woman knew she had just committed a _massive_ faux pas. She was certain that she would face some harsh punishment when she returned to headquarters, and possibly even excommunication if the clergy were in a particularly foul mood.

Issei, for his part, blinked in confusion, not sure what had caused the sudden shift of mood in his childhood friend.

"Uh... on your feet, you two... I'm not really comfortable with the bowing... we're all equals here, after all."

The two followed his command, but Xenovia shook her head. "I do not mean to correct you, sir, but that is not the truth. We are but two lowly exorcists. You are the peak of purity and perfection, an Angel in God's service. We pale in comparison to your radiance."

Issei cringed internally at the sheer cheesiness of that statement. "Okay, drop the "sir" thing, too. It's Issei."

"As you wish, si- Issei."

"So..." Irina said, her fingertips pressing against one another nervously, "...you're not angry?"

Issei raised an eyebrow at that. "No. Why would I be?"

Irina's eyes met Issei's. "Well... during out training, we were always told that we had to be very formal and polite if we were ever blessed enough to meet with an Angel. They always hammered it in that Angels would get angry if they weren't addressed formally."

The Angel shrugged. "Well, I couldn't tell you if that's true for all Angels, but it's not true with me. I prefer it when people are casual, anyway. If it matters that much to you, though, I won't tell anyone – my lips are sealed."

Xenovia let out a shaky breath. "You are very forgiving, Issei..."

Issei shook his head. "Not really. I just don't take offense to old friends being nice to me."

The exorcists digested this for a moment before Irina filled the silence. "So, Issei, I guess there's... a bit of story behind how you became an Angel?"

Issei nodded. "Yeah. I'll tell you later. Now then, back to the original point?"

Xenovia and Irina's faces were blank.

The Jack of Hearts sighed. "You wanted to know what happened in here?"

They both nodded.

"Well," Issei said, leaning against the pulpit once more, "a group of Fallen Angels and a pack of rogue exorcists were using this church as a base. They'd taken one of my friends prisoner, so I got two other Brave Saints to help me come in here and rip them apart. The church suffered some collateral damage, and I don't have the motivation, time or energy to clean the place up. Not like anyone worships here anyway."

The two nodded once more, but Irina was the only one to speak.

"Well, they said there was a room beneath the church for us to stay..."

Issei raised an eyebrow at them. "I wouldn't advise that."

"Why not?"

Issei indicated for the two to come forwards.

"Help me push this."

A few seconds of loud scraping later, the staircase was exposed once more, and Issei pointed into the dark.

"Take a good whiff of that."

They did.

"Ugh!" Xenovia cried, turning away with her hands covering her mouth. Irina was in a similar position, clearly trying to force back vomit.

"Yeah," Issei said in a deadpan tone. "I don't think I need to tell you what that smell is."

The small group stepped away from the hidden staircase before continuing the conversation.

"What is that _from_?" Irina asked, still dry-heaving.

"That would be the remains of the exorcists," Issei replied, his voice casual. "I don't think you want to be staying there."

"So," Irina said, her voice suddenly somewhat nervous, "where would you advise we stay?"

Issei shrugged. "How about my house? We've got a spare room, and I'm sure my parents will understand."

Xenovia smiled at that. "You truly are generous, Issei..."

To her surprise, Issei's face suddenly became deadly serious. "Before we leave, why don't we go over my conditions?"

The two exorcists nodded mutely.

"First," Issei said, raising a finger for emphasis, "you do not tell my parents _anything_. They don't know I'm an Angel, and they don't need to. If anyone's going to ever break the news to them, it's going to be me. Understand?"

"Second," Issei said, raising another finger, "no unnecessary violence. You don't attack the Devils unless they attack you first. No threatening anyone in this town unless they're keeping the swords and won't give them up. Got it?"

Another nod.

"I'm glad we understand each other," Issei finished. "Let's go." He pointed towards the church exit and began walking.

Xenovia and Irina looked at one another, then fell into step behind the teen.

* * *

When they arrived back at the Hyoudou residence, Issei very quickly explained the situation to his parents, and they had just as quickly acquiesced to his request, happy to aid the two exorcists who had apparently been booked into a hotel room that was already in use.

Xenovia and Irina were quite surprised that Issei was able to come up with a plausible explanation as quickly as he did.

"You two don't mind sharing a bed, do you?" Issei asked as they climbed the stairs.

"No," Irina replied. "We've done it plenty of times..."

Issei stopped on the stairs and turned to look at her, eyebrows raised.

"What?" Irina asked, confused.

Issei shook his head, turned around and continued on, a sarcastic reply desperately trying to escape the tip of his tongue.

For a moment, the confusion remained on Irina's face. After that moment passed, she turned red enough that she appeared to have a bad sunburn.

"I meant that we've shared a bed to sleep in!" Irina stammered. "We don't do _that_ , you pervert!"

"Did I say anything?"

* * *

"Alright, you two," Issei said as they came to the second floor landings, "guest room is down the hall. If you want to talk, my room's the second on the right."

The two exorcists excused themselves, both still red in the face. Issei ducked inside his room, still grinning.

* * *

He had not been in his room for more than fifteen seconds when Ddraig began speaking to him, the dragon's voice a cold tone.

 **"Issei, they are not here to be friends with you. They are here for a church mission to retrieve the stolen Excalibur swords."**

Issei frowned at that. "Yeah, I know. Where the hell is _this_ coming from?"

 **"I'm saying don't get attached. They lead dangerous lives and could well die on this mission, depending who stole those swords."**

Issei's stomach churned at the thought.

I'm not gonna let that happen. I made a promise and I'm keeping it if it kills me."

 **"So be it, Issei. Just be careful. We don't know exactly who or what we're up against here. I'd rather you not run straight to the reaper's scythe."**

Issei was quiet at that.

* * *

Gabriel's Jack had been doing unfinished homework for about half an hour when the knock came at the door.

"Yeah?"

The door steadily creaked open to reveal the two exorcists, Irina breaking the silence. "Are we interrupting you, Issei?"

The brunette shook his head. "Not really. Just in the middle of some homework. Why?"

"We both want to know, Issei..." Xenovia said, trailing off.

"Want to know what? Why I'm an Angel?" Issei guessed, taking a gamble on the obvious question.

The two exorcists nodded, and Issei sighed.

"Well, sit down," Issei said, gesturing towards the bed. "This is a bit of a story."

The two did so without question.

"Okay," Issei began, stretching his arms over the back of the chair. "Not too long ago, I went on a date with a girl, and it turned out she was a Fallen Angel. I didn't know _that_ , of course. Anyway, she killed me at the end of our date."

The two gasped.

Issei put a hand up. "I'm not done. I remember praying while I was bleeding out. When I woke up, I was a Brave Saint. Then, I wound up spending two weeks in Heaven while the Seraphs were helping to get permission from the Devil Kings for me to come back here. Once I did, my parents... well, they were so happy to have me back that they didn't even question my story. Which wasn't a very good one, as I'm sure you found out."

Irina's eyes suddenly widened. "That's why you don't want to tell your parents, isn't it?"

Issei nodded. "They don't need to worry about me more than they already do. And they don't need that kind of stress."

At this, Xenovia and Irina were quiet.

"Oh yeah, Xenovia."

"Yes?" the young woman replied, looking up.

"Griselda told me to tell you to call her once you arrived in Kuoh."

It was Xenovia's turn to be surprised. "Oh! I forgot! I need to- wait." Evidently the gears had turned in the young exorcist's mind. "You know Griselda?"

Issei snorted, amused. "We're in service to the same Seraph and she's my instructor for sword combat. Yeah, I know Griselda."

"I see..." Xenovia said. "If she's the Queen of Hearts, what rank are you?"

Issei's lips curled in a half-grin. "The Jack."

* * *

 _And cut._


	22. Their Mission and His

_This got one of the most critical rewrites in the entire story._

* * *

"This doesn't make sense," Xenovia murmured as she undressed for bed, completely unashamed of doing so in front of her fellow exorcist. Irina had not been joking when she said that she and Xenovia had shared a bed numerous times whilst out on missions for the church.

"What doesn't?" Irina asked, unfazed by the view of Xenovia's nearly naked body as the blue-haired young woman slipped beneath the covers next to her.

"How did _he_ of all people managed to get selected as a Brave Saint?" Xenovia replied as she curled up, facing away from Irina. "I thought that was supposed to be a reward for those who were faithful to God's teachings, not just handed out to anyone who had a prayer..."

Irina pouted at that. "C'mon, Xenovia, you're just being uptight! If Issei is a Brave Saint now, then it was God's will for him to be. Have faith, will ya?"

Xenovia gave a noncommittal hum, and Irina could tell that her fellow exorcist was not convinced in the slightest.

* * *

The next morning, Issei was forcibly dragged from his bed courtesy of the eternal annoyance that was the small ringing device on his nightstand that he constantly had to restrain the urge to break.

As he dressed, he could hear footsteps approach his room, the floorboards creaking beneath the footsteps of whoever was coming. A moment later, a knock rang through the room.

"Yeah? Come in."

The door creaked open slightly, and Irina's head poked in. "Err... Issei? What did you want us to do? You want us to come to school with you, or...?"

Issei shook his head. "Either of you guys have a cell phone?"

Irina nodded.

"Okay," Issei continued, "can I get one or both of you guy's numbers? I'll call you once I've got the meeting between you and the Devils set up. I already let them know you were coming, trying to keep a fight from breaking out."

"You friends with them or something?" Irina asked, her tone slightly dismissive.

Issei shrugged. "'Friends'" may be stretching it, but we're on okay terms, I think. Can I just get that number?"

"Okay, then," Irina said, "Here it is..."

* * *

When Issei arrived at school, he made his way to the Student Council office before doing anything else. As he had hoped, Sona was waiting for him there, though Rias was absent.

She did not even allow him to get out a word before she spoke. "I assume they've arrived?"

Issei nodded. "Where do you want to meet with them?"

"The Occult Research Club building, this afternoon. Can you arrange that?"

Another nod. "Yeah, easy enough. You already talk this over with Rias?"

"Indeed I have," Sona replied. "She's agreed to meet with them, no issues there."

"Okay, then," Issei said, "So this afternoon, ORC building?"

Sona nodded.

* * *

The school day dragged by, Issei not looking forward at all to the meeting. Issei was not looking forward to having to play mediator between exorcists and Devils when both groups wanted the other dead.

The final bell, normally a welcome relief to the teenage Angel, seemed today to be screaming laughter at his dread of the coming minutes.

Yet Issei forced himself to do his duty anyway. Once he was outside, he called Irina and let her know where to meet him.

A quarter of an hour later, the two exorcists he had been awaiting arrived, dressed in the all-concealing robes and hoods they had been wearing the night before.

Wordlessly, Issei had indicated for them to follow him.

* * *

Unbeknownst to Issei, Rias was awaiting the meeting with equal dread. She'd annihilated by Riser in the Rating Game and mocked viciously for it; hell, probably the only reason she wasn't being mercilessly fucked by Riser was because her brother had forbidden the Phenex descendant to touch her without her consent. Her self-esteem was at an all-time low after that, and now she had to deal with this mess involving two exorcists; bad enough on its own, but she suspected it would quickly grow into something much worse.

And then, of course, there was the matter of Kiba. He'd been acting strangely ever since she mentioned the Excaliburs, to the point of zoning out when they'd been dealing with a stray. When she'd tried to ask him if he was worried about the swords, he'd blatantly and rather coldly sidestepped the question before wandering off. Then he hadn't appeared for club duties the day after.

Everything seemed to be going wrong at once, and she was helpless to do anything about it.

* * *

As they walked towards the old school building in which the ORC met, the two exorcists began to ask questions. Xenovia went first.

"Issei, are you sure this is safe?"

The brunette shrugged. "I've been here twice now. They haven't tried to kill me yet. That said... you do have your swords, right?"

Both nodded, earning the same gesture from Issei.

"I seriously doubt anything's going to happen, but just in case..."

Neither exorcist required further elaboration on _that_ point.

"Something happen between you and them, Issei? You seem a bit tense..." Irina inquired.

"No," Issei replied, his tone curt. "Just... can't say I'm looking forward to this. Negotiations aren't exactly my strong suit. Hopefully I won't need to do much of that..."

Irina gave an understanding nod at that, and all three fell silent.

* * *

When Issei pushed open the door to the club room, it revealed the two high-ranking Devils of the town and their peerages, their eyes all fixed on the three people entering the room.

"So you've arrived," Sona said, her voice wary.

Issei nodded as the exorcists filed in and took a seat on the couch opposite Sona and Rias, both of whom deliberately avoided Issei's gaze.

"So, let's get straight to the point," Rias said to the exorcists. "I was informed that you two were here to track down some stolen Excalibur swords. Is this the truth?"

Xenovia was the one to respond. "Indeed. I assume you were told this by Issei?"

"Quite an informal way to speak of your direct superior," Rias noted.

"It's what he told us to call him," Irina said, her voice its usual dissonant cheer.

"Be that as it may," Rias continued, "what exactly are you trying to get us to do?"

"It couldn't be simpler," Xenovia replied. "Stay completely out of it. It's between the Fallen Angels who stole the swords and us. It does _not_ concern the Devils here."

"I see," Rias replied. "For your information, I had no intention of siding with the Fallen Angels anyway. It would bring shame upon my household."

As the the exorcists and Devils continued to passive-aggressively snap at each others' scruffs, Issei's eyes lazily drifted over the peerage members in the room.

There was Akeno, Rias' Queen, standing not far behind the King. Koneko sat in silence on the couch to Rias' right, eating chips. Saji stood close to Sona, while Tsubaki was directly next to her.

 _Where's Kiba?_

* * *

Issei's question would be answered a few minutes later, when Kiba showed up in the club room unannounced, halting the conversation between the two exorcists and the Devils and turning all eyes toward the blonde.

"Where have you been?" Koneko said, her voice its usual deadpan tone.

"Does it matter?" Kiba replied tersely.

"It does, Kiba," Rias cut in. "You've been acting strangely since Sunday. What's going on? And don't tell me that you're having another off day."

Rather than respond, Kiba slowly walked over to Issei, centering himself before the Angel and staring him through his face.

"Why did you bring _them_ here?"

Issei returned his stare. "I didn't."

"Then why are they here?"

Issei refused to blink as his next words left him. "The church sent them. I don't have any control over what the clergy does, Kiba. You've got an issue with it, take it up with Lord Michael."

"You're an Angel. They would have listened to you."

Issei gave a snort. "It wouldn't have mattered. They were already on their way when I found out they were coming."

"Make them leave, then."

"I can't. I don't have any authority over them," Issei shot back, his words not _technically_ a lie. "And even if I did, they're here on a mission to get back some stolen Excalibur swords for the church, not to fight with you or any other Devil here. I told you _all_ of that when I called you."

"And how do I know they won't decide to add an _auxiliary_ mission to their goals here?"

"Because," Issei replied sharply, "I've asked them not to if they want my help. Like I said to them, no violence against anyone but the people who stole the swords unless they were attacked first."

Kiba's response was laced with anger. "I don't care. Those swords don't need to go back to the church, they need to be _destroyed_."

"Curious," Issei said, "why do these swords seem to piss you off so much?"

Kiba had begun to shake as he replied. "I'm a Devil, Issei. I don't like Holy Swords."

"You're a Devil, so what?" Issei responded, pulling the thread a bit further. "So is almost everyone else here save me, Xenovia and Irina. You're the only one this worked up. Something I should know?"

"No, it isn't."

"Then what's the issue?" Issei replied, feeling frustration mount.

 _Getting an answer out of him seems to be like pulling teeth_...

"Those swords need to be _destroyed_ ," Kiba repeated, hissung. "I will not let them cause harm to _anyone_ else, you understand?"

 _Well, that approach isn't working..._

For a few seconds, Issei was silent, running his tongue around inside his mouth as he thought about his options, before hitting on an idea.

"How about this, Kiba?"

Kiba continued to glare at Issei as the brunette made his offer.

"How about you help the three of us find the swords? You obviously hate Holy Swords, so why don't we work together?"

"Issei!" Irina hissed. "Weren't you listening to _anything_ we said? We agreed that the Devils should just stay out of it!"

Issei's gaze flicked to Irina. "Yeah, well, we didn't have Kiba here making a fuss when you said that. Change your approach to fit the situation, right?"

"Why would I agree to that?" Kiba snarled, his fists balling up and face turning red with rage. "Why in the _hell_ would I help you get Holy Swords back to the church?"

Issei's eyes jumped to Xenovia. "Tell me something, Xenovia, would the church rather the swords be destroyed or remain in the hands of the Fallen Angels?"

"Well," Xenovia replied, her voice suspicious, "we would rather destroy them, of course, but our mission is to _retrieve_ them, Issei!"

Issei took a deep breath, and was quiet for a moment before he answered her.

"I understand. And I don't care."

All eyes darted to him.

"I'm going to confess something. I honestly couldn't give less of a damn about those swords."

Xenovia and Irina's mouths dropped open at those words.

"I care about you," Issei said, looking at the blue-haired exorcist. "I care about you, Xenovia, and I care about Irina. The church can replace Holy Swords. They can't replace you."

Irina was the one to reply. "Issei, that's wrong. We're just two exorcists. There are hundreds in the church, and more are being trained as we speak. Those swords are each one-of-a-kind - they can't be replaced."

"Indeed," Xenovia cut in, "your priorities are backwards, Issei."

The Jack of Hearts shrugged. "Then I'll keep them that way. And you know why?"

Xenovia shook her head, incomprehension in her face.

"Real simple," Issei said, stepping out from in front of Kiba and standing directly in Xenovia's line of sight as he sighed. "Xenovia, I don't want Griselda, the Queen of Hearts, to have to hear from me or anyone else why she'll never see her charge again, especially when I promised I'd protect you and Irina."

Xenovia had no response to that, and her eyes snaked downwards to the floor.

"And Irina?" Issei continued, looking over at his childhood friend. "I don't want your parents to have to hear from church officials, Angels or whoever that their daughter is never coming home. I'd much rather you both return to the church without any swords than only one of you return with all of them."

Irina shook her head, a slight tear coming from her eye at those words. "Issei... doing that would bring shame on us and our families..."

Issei shrugged. "And if it comes to that, Irina, I'll find a way to take the fall for it and get all the blame pinned on me."

It was Irina's turn to not be sure what to say.

"Really," Issei continued, "that goes for all of you. I don't want your families, blood or not, to have to arrange any funerals because this meeting went bad."

Issei's eyes wandered to Kiba, who stood, the blonde's gaze softer than it had been.

"So then, Kiba," Issei said without a hint of emotion in his voice, "what's it gonna be?"

* * *

 _And cut._


	23. History Lessons

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

The entire club had fallen silent at Issei's single, piercing question towards Rias' Knight, none sure quite what to make of his declarations and demand. Glances were exchanged between Devils and exorcists, eyes racing to meet other eyes throughout the room, all sharing the same confusion.

The exorcists were bewildered by Issei's professed disinterest in the swords and his apparent valuing of them before all else. Neither could understand why this Angel, a being of God, would care for their lives such to place it before the holy cause. Neither could they understand why he would go so far as to proclaim his own uncaring attitude towards the Excaliburs; surely he should be more aware than any other in the room of the inherent value of those swords? And yet he had disregarded them as little more than a cheap novelty, to be replaced on a whim.

In contrast, however, there was something unequivocally delightful to the two exorcists to be told that they mattered to an Angel. Orders from Heaven had always been curt, a formal affair of communication that left no room for caring or any feeling beyond the cold, blunt truth. Issei's words, on the other hand, had been the diametric opposite. There was not a hint of anger or sarcasm in his tone when he had declared he wished for all within the chamber to retain their place upon the mortal coil; even the Devils, his racial enemies, had been welcome to receive that kindness.

To the Devils, the Angel's statements were equally perplexing, if for different reasons. They had always been told that exorcists would obey any order an Angel gave them without a hint of hesitation and practically worshiped the ground they walked on. Issei showed none of this; he claimed to hold no authority over them and treated the exorcists as his equals, not even caring that one of them had dared question him. They, in turn, addressed him as they might a friend or acquaintance, not as a being of such importance that they literally prayed to him and his master. And Issei had _asked_ to be treated this way, if their words were to be believed.

Was it because Issei was once human? Or were their old conceptions about the Angels' place in the church hierarchy completely wrong?

* * *

For more than fifteen seconds, the room was quieter than a long-sealed mausoleum. Thoughts raced through the churning minds of all present, all hearts beating quicker from tension.

Only Kiba and Issei were excluded from this, their eyes remaining locked.

It would ultimately be Rias Gremory's Knight who broke the silence.

"Well..." the blonde Devil replied slowly, "I still want those swords destroyed..."

Issei shrugged. "I can meet you partway on that, if you'd like."

All eyes darted to Issei once more, and Kiba asked the question on every person's mind.

"What do you mean by that?"

Issei sighed, knowing the two exorcists were unlikely to support his solution. The Jack, however, could not think of another solution to the predicament they were currently in.

"You help us find those swords. If we find them, you can destroy one."

"Issei!" Irina piped up, sending him a pained look as she did so. "That isn't necessary! We can handle this situation on our own! We don't need their help and we don't need to compromise on this!"

Issei turned his head to glance at his childhood friend. "Irina, I can tell you right now we'll need all the help we can get. Kuoh's a big place, and searching for those swords is going to be difficult enough without having to fight with the Devils here every step of the way. Especially since we don't know who we're up against here, other than that there's a Fallen Angel involved."

"I agree," Xenovia suddenly cut in, surprising all in the room. "I support Issei's solution."

"Xenovia!" Irina cried.

"Irina," Xenovia said, "we were told the low odds of success when we took this mission. I am as willing to give my life for the sacred cause as any exorcist, but I admit I've no desire to hear the songs of Heaven yet. Anything that might tip the odds in our favor, even if there are trade-offs, is welcome to me."

"But… they're _Devils_..."

Xenovia shrugged. "Sometimes we must tolerate one evil to extinguish a greater threat."

Numerous frowns were sent the two exorcist's way at those words, but the two young women ignored them as they continued to argue.

"Think we should we wait for them to finish or cut in now?" Issei casually asked Kiba, his voice utterly drenched in sarcasm.

Kiba's only reply was to shrug.

"Enough."

All eyes darted towards the source of the voice, one annoyed Sona Sitri, who had clearly lost patience with the two arguing exorcists.

"Are you going to accept Issei's proposal or not?" Sona demanded tersely, addressing not just the exorcists, but the other Devils in the room.

"I see no reason to object," Rias said, her voice calm and confident. "We'll stay out of your business..."

"President, no."

Issei blinked, surprised at Kiba's sudden, cold outburst.

"President," Kiba said, "I have to help them. If I can destroy at least one sword, I'll be happy I could at least do that."

"Kiba, no," Rias murmured, shaking her head. "I know why you hate holy swords, but getting involved with this will just complicate things."

"I don't care, President. I'm going to help them, and there's nothing you can do to stop me. You just said you know why I hate holy swords, Excalibur in particular. You of all people should understand why I have to do this."

For a moment, those words hung in the air, Issei sure that there was about to be a very loud discussion of how backtalk should be dealt with by Kiba's King.

Then, Rias gave the words nearly everyone in the room least expected.

"If you insist, Kiba… do as you will. Just… _please_ be careful."

* * *

After that, with hostilities defused, the meeting wrapped up fairly quickly. Both sides ultimately consented to the peaceful, if temporary, coexistence of the exorcists and Devils whilst the former tracked down the Excalibur swords within Kuoh. It was also decided that Kiba would come along with Issei and the two exorcists to the Angel's home to plan their search.

The entire meeting was surprisingly painless for all concerned.

* * *

Before discussions of strategy could get anywhere near underway, however, Issei had to get a single question answered.

"Kiba, why are you so… freaked out by the Excaliburs? None of the other Devils seemed _that_ concerned..."

The three were seated in Issei's bedroom; the exorcists shared a space on the bed, Kiba stood in a corner, Issei sat in his desk chair.

Kiba swallowed at the question and looked away, confusing Issei even before he noticed Kiba trying to blink back tears.

"...they're the reason that I am where I am." the blonde Devil whispered, his voice barely audible yet filled with unmistakable anger.

Issei tipped his head to one side. "What do you mean?" he asked, his tone careful to avoid any hint of emotion.

A slow, pained breath escaped Kiba before he went silent, looking down at the floor.

"I'm the only survivor of the Holy Sword Project."

The two exorcists gasped and crossed themselves. Issei, meanwhile, just stared at Kiba blankly.

"Uh..." Issei mumbled, "I'm not trying to sound insensitive, Kiba, but… I've got no idea what that is."

Six eyes turned to look Issei over, all surprised. He just shrugged cluelessly.

Kiba took a long, pained breath.

"Well..." the Gremory Knight said slowly. "A long time ago, there was a project in the church to try to create people who could wield holy swords, _especially_ the Excaliburs. To that end, they performed experiments on children. I was one of them."

Issei tensed. "The church did that? You're kidding me..."

Kiba shook his head. "I wish I was..."

"So..." Issei asked hesitantly, "can you wield a holy sword, then?"

Kiba shook his head again. "No. None of us could. The project failed completely."

"What happened then?" Issei said, knowing just from Kiba's posture and expression that he was not going to like the answer.

"They… _disposed_ of the test subjects," Kiba spat, unparalleled hatred spewing from his lips. "Test subjects, nothing. We were _kids_. They poisoned us with gas. I'm the only one who got out of the church, but..."

Issei jaw had clenched, and anger blazed anew with his mind. _I'm supposed to be allied with a church that's willing to do shit like_ _ **this**_ _to fucking kids?_

"But…?"

Kiba looked at Issei, a mix of rage and sadness beyond measure in his eyes. "I'd already inhaled some of it… I didn't actually make it. Rias showed up just after and took me as her Knight. Don't know where she came from, and I don't care."

Kiba's gaze did a sweep of the room, the three other people in the room shocked by the blonde Devil's pained confession.

"Now do you understand why I hate Excalibur, Issei?"

The brunette nodded as his eyes shifted to the two exorcists seated on the bed.

His eyes said what his mind was thinking.

 _I'm supposed to work with people willing to murder_ _ **kids…**_ _?_

"Issei," Xenovia said urgently, "understand something. The Holy Sword Project is viewed with the utmost shame by the entirety of the church."

Issei's reply was cold. "I should hope so."

"If it makes you feel better, Issei," Irina cut it, "the person in charge of it has been excommunicated-"

" _What?!_ " Issei snapped, getting an awful sense of déjà vu. "Excommunicated? That's it? He should've been _executed_. Someone who's willing to gas kids doesn't deserve a second chance!"

Neither exorcist had an answer to that; both viewed excommunication as the ultimate punishment the church could inflict upon a person. Kiba, meanwhile, had a response ready and waiting.

"Never thought I would see the day."

Issei turned to look at the blonde Devil, his teeth still bared. "What?"

Kiba gave a humorless snort. "Never thought I would see the day when an Angel actually agreed with me on that."

Issei simply shook his head.

* * *

After that, the group, especially Issei, took a few minutes to breathe and calm down. Issei knew that he would have to effectively ignore his newfound anger towards the church in order to keep his place in Heaven.

Just one more frustration to add to the ever-mounting pile.

* * *

"Okay," Issei said once those few minutes had passed. "Put that crap about the project aside. What do we know about the Fallen Angel or Angels who stole those swords? What do they want with them?"

"Well," Xenovia said hesitantly, "they're supposed to be a Fallen Angel of leader class, as far as we're aware..."

For a moment, Issei looked at the two uncomprehendingly, before letting out an annoyed sigh and staring back at the ceiling.

"And you were planning on telling me this… _when_?"

"Right now," Xenovia replied bluntly.

Issei sighed. "All right. Wonderful. So all we have to do is take down a Fallen Angel that's likely to be roughly equal to at least a _very_ high-ranking Angel in terms of power. That's definitely a job you'd send two teenage exorcists with swords, a low-level Angel and a low-ranked Devil to do."

"Have some faith in us, Issei!" Irina called, her voice a cheer to the gloom of Xenovia's previous declaration. "We've beaten enemies way stronger than us before!"

"Congratulations," Issei shot back, his voice deadpan. "That doesn't mean a damn thing, because I severely doubt that any of your previous opponents have been near as strong as a leader among one of the Three Factions."

Xenovia and Irina looked at him grumpily, their expressions both conveying an identical message: _Thanks for the vote of confidence._

" _Anyway_ ," Xenovia said, annoyed, "there was a priest here who was sent to scout the area, but we lost contact with him recently." Her eyes flicked to Kiba. "Do _you_ know anything about that?"

"Yeah," the Devil replied instantly. "I saw him die."

Issei, Xenovia and Irina all swallowed.

"I was wandering the city at night a few days ago when I ran into him. He was injured, was running away from somebody. A woman with a holy sword. She killed him right in front of me."

A lump of dread formed in Issei's throat.

 _A woman… don't let it be her…_

"I tried to attack her, but she just threw some kind of flash bomb and ran away before I could catch her. Didn't get a good look at her face."

Xenovia and Irina both bit their lips and exchanged glances.

"That… makes things somewhat more difficult," Xenovia commented unnecessarily.

"So..." Issei murmured, causing the other three to look his way. "You said it was a woman?"

Kiba nodded, not sure what Issei was getting at.

Issei's face hardened as he said his next words. "You said you didn't get a good look at her face. Anywhere else? Any noticeable features on her? Something we could use to identify her?"

Kiba's brow furrowed as he examined his memory. It was several seconds before he recalled the sole useful tidbit of information he had collected.

"Just one," Kiba said, nodding slightly as he did so. "She seemed to be missing most of her left hand. She had a thumb, I think, but everything above it had been sliced off."

Issei's eyes widened before he buried his face in his hands.

"Uh… Issei?" Irina asked, concerned. "Do you think you know who she is?"

Issei nodded without removing his fingers. "Lord Michael, you _idiot_..."

All three other teens in the room gasped at those words, Irina and Xenovia both immediately clasping their hands in prayer, begging for God to not rain judgment upon them for being in the presence of those words.

Kiba, meanwhile, had had his jaw drop open. Looking to Issei, his next words were careful.

"Uh… Issei? You said you think you know who she was?"

Issei shook his head. "I don't _think_ I know who she was. You might as well have shouted her name through a megaphone, Kiba."

"Then..." Kiba said hesitantly, "who is she?"

Finally, Issei pulled his hands away, his eyes consumed by a pure, absolute fury that shocked even Kiba.

"She's the reason I'm where _I_ am."

With that, Issei spilled his guts to Kiba, much as the blonde Devil had done for him. He told him everything; how he had taken Raynare on a date, how she'd brutally murdered him at the end of it and how she'd viciously mocked him as she did so.

When he'd finished, Kiba was quiet for a few moments. He held sympathy for the Angel; he knew what it was like to be betrayed.

Unsure of what else to say, he asked the obvious question.

"Not trying to mock you, Issei, but why did Gabriel _really_ pick you as her Saint?"

Issei sighed.

"I'm the host of the Red Dragon Emperor. Nothing more, nothing less."

* * *

 _And cut._


	24. Investigation

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Xenovia, Irina and Kiba's mouths all dropped open, but Kiba was the only one to speak.

"N-No way," he said, incredulous. "You're lying. I don't believe you."

Issei shrugged as he raised his arm. "Believe this."

A moment later, the familiar red gauntlet formed across his flesh.

Kiba swallowed. "So the Angel living in Kuoh is a Longinus wielder." He exhaled. "Okay, then. Interesting."

Xenovia and Irina just looked at one another, shock in their eyes.

Almost immediately afterwards, Issei made the gauntlet disappear. "Well then, now that that's sorted, I think it's time we get hunting, don't you?"

Around the room, three heads nodded.

* * *

"You managed to talk a Devil into wearing priest's clothes?" Irina commented, more surprised than questioning.

Issei shrugged, looking about the old, ruined church they had come to as darkness fell. "I didn't have to do much talking."

"Nothing will get in the way," Kiba murmured darkly as he finished buttoning up the vestments. "Nothing will stop my revenge. If I must wear the enemy's clothes, so be it..."

"Okay, then," Issei said, trying to ignore Kiba's statement of "the enemy" and what it might mean for him. "Xenovia, you said you wanted to split up to search, right?"

The blue-haired exorcist nodded. "As you said before, Issei, Kuoh is a large city. It would be prudent for us to divide ourselves into two groups in order to cover more ground."

Issei nodded. "So, how should we pair this off?"

"I'll go with you, Issei," Irina instantly spoke up, her voice betraying her eagerness to spend some time, even now, with her old childhood friend.

Issei looked first to Irina with a smile, before looking to Xenovia and Kiba, worry in his eyes.

For their part, the Devil and the exorcist were looking at one another, their expressions unreadable.

"So..." Issei said awkwardly, "you guys okay with that?"

For a couple of seconds, neither gave an answer, until Xenovia slowly bobbed her head.

"That arrangement is acceptable…"

Kiba gave a slight shrug at that. "Fine."

"Can I trust that you two won't try to kill each other?" Issei questioned.

It was Xenovia's turn to shrug. "If he refrains from attacking me, I won't attack him."

"Likewise," Kiba followed up.

Issei sighed, feeling sure that this was the wrong course of action but having no case upon which to base the complaint beyond that. "Okay, then, if you two are sure… if we see anything, we'll call you, and vice versa, everyone got that?"

Heads nodded around the room.

"Okay, then… let's get searching. Irina and I can take the west part of town. You guys handle the east."

"As you would have it," Xenovia replied.

* * *

Almost immediately after splitting off from the group, Irina struck up conversation as they wandered the darkened streets.

"So, Issei," she asked, her voice filled with all the eagerness Issei remembered, "what's Heaven like?"

Issei shrugged, a slight grin on his face as Irina's tone caused nostalgia to wash over him. "Heavenly."

Irina made a face. "Well, _duh_. Of course it is. It's _Heaven_. What makes it so great?"

Issei chuckled at her childish antics, wanting information out of him like she was prepared to scan his brain to get it. "Well, it's mostly the people. The other Brave Saints, anyway – I don't spend a lot of time with the born Angels."

His childhood friend tipped her head to one side. "Why not?"

Issei shrugged once more. "Not a whole lot of reason to. I don't spend too much time in Heaven. Too much on my plate down here. If it weren't for my parents, I'd be living up there, trust me."

Irina nodded, soaking up this information the way a sponge absorbs water. "So, the other Brave Saints are pretty nice, right?"

Issei's head bobbed. "Yeah, mostly. You'd think they'd hold me at arm's length when you think about my life beforehand, but… well, let's just say I'd consider them better friends then I ever had in school. Did you know any of them before they were… "angelized", as it were?"

Irina's face assumed a quizzical expression. "I only knew Sister Griselda personally; I'd heard of a good number of the other ones, though. Most of them were among the church's most capable exorcists."

Silence awkwardly reigned between the two, as the last sentence had left no further threads to continue from; Issei refused to bear it for more than a few seconds before trying to erase it.

"Hey, do you still watch those old shows we used to love when we were younger?" Issei asked, going off of what he remembered about Irina.

Irina nodded, poking her two index fingers together. "And… I'm not too proud to admit this, but… I still pretend I'm one of the heroes in them from time to time. You know, all the posing and chanting we used to do when we were kids..."

Issei chortled slightly. "Don't worry about it. I do weirder things."

"Like what?" Irina inquired, wondering what Issei could possibly do that was stranger than what she had just confessed.

"I sometimes beg Griselda to give me a break during training."

Irina broke into an enormous smile.

Issei nodded, eyes rolled slightly. "I remember that first week after I was reincarnated. At times I thought that I was actually in Hell and that the Queen of Hearts was my eternal punishment. Thankfully she didn't have me all day, just in the morning. Dulio's more fun to be around, anyway."

Irina gasped. "You know Dulio Gesualdo?"

The brunette blinked. "Err… yeah. He's a friend of mine. He taught me how to use light magic. What about him?"

"It's incredible," Irina almost sniffled. "My old friend is friends with the strongest exorcist in the church and has learned from him. It's wonderful how things turned out, Issei! Amen!" At that, Irina crossed herself.

Issei grimaced slightly. "Still wish it could have _not_ involved me getting a giant spear stabbed through my chest to get me there, but I guess beggars can't be choosers."

The exorcist gulped, realizing how insensitive she must have sounded. "I-I'm sorry, Issei. I didn't mean to bring back any bad memories..."

Issei shrugged dismissively. "No point in denying them. They are what they are, you know?"

For a few minutes, as they sought any clue to Raynare's whereabouts in the darkness-covered streets, there was silence between the two.

Then, Irina broke the quiet.

"Hey, Issei?" Irina asked, her voice having become slightly softer, yet more hopeful.

"Yeah?"

"Do… do you think I might be able to become a Brave Saint?" Irina asked, her voice hiding a quiet desperation.

Unbeknownst to Issei, it was not just the young woman's exorcist training that made her hope to be seen as worthy of sainthood and reincarnated. She also was motivated by an old, childish desire, to not be surpassed by her childhood friend. She knew the desire to be sinful, yet she could not help it.

This made Issei's answer all the more reassuring to her ears.

"You? If the Seraphs ever go looking for another Saint, they'll probably be fighting each other over who gets to have you in their deck. You and Xenovia both."

Irina's grin got wider. "You really think so, Issei?"

The Angel nodded, returning her smile.

At that moment, the phone in Issei's pocket buzzed to life.

* * *

On the opposite side of town, the conversation between Xenovia and Kiba was much less personable; each participant's tone was short, neither revealing much by their voices or words.

"So, Yuuto Kiba," Xenovia started as they wandered through the streets, "who is Issei, really?"

Kiba shrugged. "What do you mean?"

"What is he like?" Xenovia asked.

Another shrug. "Don't know him very well. He and I don't talk much."

"Oh?" Xenovia said, her voice quiet. "I see. Have you clashed?"

Kiba shook his head. "No. He's actually pretty nice, from what little I've seen. Doesn't seem to like fights, but you could tell that just from what he did this afternoon."

Xenovia chewed her lip. "How are relations between the Devils and him in this town?"

Kiba ran his tongue across the inside of his lip before he responded. "It's been pretty quiet. An argument or two at the beginning, but it died down pretty quickly. He's never tried to stop us from making contracts or anything like that. Hell, he seems to be happy pretending we don't exist."

Xenovia's eyes narrowed slightly. "Issei seems a walking contradiction."

Kiba gave yet another shrug. "Looks that way."

The exorcist shook her head, changing the subject. "Where are we going?"

Kiba had been leading the way, naturally; Xenovia was a newcomer to Kuoh, while Kiba had lived there for years.

"Someplace without people."

"Anywhere specific?" Xenovia inquired, her tone suspicious.

Kiba nodded.

* * *

For several long minutes, the two paced in silence, before coming upon Kiba's destination.

The stone from which the old building was constructed was cracking, vines snaking up the columns that half-ringed the structure. The central piece of the edifice was circular, ringed with windows and doors, all swathed in complete darkness.

"Should I be worried?" Xenovia asked dryly.

"Depends."

It was not Kiba who had responded.

It was the silhouette that sat atop the roof, the voice a woman's contralto that made no secret of its owners' insanity.

Both exorcist and Devil drew their swords as the woman leaped down, a sword of her own in her right hand.

Kiba could see, under the glare of the moonlight, that the left possessed only a thumb.

That was all he had time to notice before the woman streaked towards them, leaving Kiba and Xenovia only a fraction of a second to meet her blade.

Metal rang against metal as the two blades bit into the third.

Almost immediately, the woman retreated at a blinding pace, covering twenty feet and jumping backwards up the stairs in less than a second.

Kiba closed the gap almost instantly, and the Gremory Knight and the Excalibur's wielder began to cross blades, moving too quickly for even Xenovia to follow.

"Tell me," the one-handed woman cackled as Kiba's blade rang against hers, "You wouldn't happen to know where my old _boyfriend_ is, would you? That little brat Issei? I've got a sweet surprise I think he'll like!" At the last few words, her voice escalated into a bloodcurdling singsong.

"Why'd you kill him?" Kiba demanded as they dueled in midair. "What'd he do to you?!"

"Exist!" she giggled insanely. "He had a Sacred Gear, so he had to go!" At this, she lashed out with her foot and struck Kiba in the chest. It did little damage, but it threw Kiba slightly off-balance and caused his next swing to go over her head.

Kiba dodged the next swing of the hated Excalibur by a hair's breath, losing a small bit of his front bangs in the process.

"Maybe dear, be a gentleman," she cooed, before screaming, " _and hold the fuck still!_ "

As all of this happened, Xenovia, who knew she had no chance of keeping up with a sword duel as quick as this, had quietly extracted the phone and texted their location to her comrades.

 _Now we'll see…_

* * *

When the phone in Issei's pocket began to buzz, the brunette wasted no time in extracting it.

The message read thus:

 _Under attack at large building. Old white pillars. Come quickly._

Issei's breath froze in his throat before he took off running, Irina catching up almost immediately.

"Issei!" Irina cried breathlessly. "What's going on?"

"Xenovia and Kiba need help!" Issei replied as they streaked across the town. It was about a quarter of a mile away, but though both were good runners, it would still be a couple of minutes before they arrived.

As they ran, Issei summoned the gauntlet to his arm.

 **"BOOST!"**

* * *

After running the quarter mile at a pace that would have made Griselda proud, the two skidded to a halt in the courtyard of the old building.

Issei received no more than a moment's reprieve, however, before the woman with the sword noticed him.

"Why hello, _darling_! How have you been?"

And instant later, she broke her duel with Kiba to attack Issei.

 **"EXPLOSION!"**

Issei had a fraction of a moment to form a sword of light in his hand as Raynare came towards him with her Excalibur.

Metal struck light, the sheer strength boost granted by Explosion the only reason Issei wasn't sliced in half.

"How I've _missed_ you, Issei!" Raynare squealed, utterly crazed. "It's been _so_ long since I've seen you _bleed_!"

Even as she attempted to destroy his sword, Issei pushed back just as hard, anger and determination filling his mind.

 _I beat you once, Raynare,_ _and I'll do it again!_

* * *

 _And cut._


	25. Ignition

_Next chapter. I own nothing but what I create._

* * *

Within moments of their blades locking, Issei felt his blade began to easily push Raynare's back.

Explosion and large amounts of training helped, of course, but Issei would later suspect it had more to do with having two working hands on his sword than either of those things.

The locking of blades lasted no more than a few seconds before Raynare was forced to flee back, Issei chasing her every step of the way.

The two exorcists and the Devil had all gotten well-clear of the two sword wielders, reasoning that they would just get in Issei's way; even Kiba was impressed by Issei's burst of speed.

Issei, for his part, had torn across the courtyard of the old building, nipping at Raynare's heels, not understanding how she was moving at the lightning-fast pace that she was and not caring.

The ringing of blades meeting one another happened several more times over the course of the next minute, Issei well aware he was running out of time; already, he was feeling the effects of Explosion begin to wear off. He was recharging, but a single false move would render all of it irrelevant.

Then, as Raynare attempted to take his head off once more, Issei had an idea.

Locking blades with her once more, he slowly took one hand off of it. He knew his swordmaster would never endorse this sort of technique, risky as it was, but he was rather short on other options.

Even as he removed his hand, he could feel Raynare's sword begin to push his down, and Issei realized he had only a few seconds before his right hand would resemble Raynare's left.

He formed a sword in his left hand and stabbed Raynare through the chest.

The former Fallen Angel screamed in pain, darting backwards. The wound, while deep, was in the wrong position, and Issei gritted his teeth as he towards her.

 _Damn… missed her heart…_

Raynare, for her part, had decided that perhaps this maneuver had not been such a good idea after all, as she immediately turned tail and ran back across the courtyard.

Just as Issei began to chase her, however, a voice rang out.

"You're done, Raynare."

"Huh?" both Raynare and Issei said at the same time. Everyone looked towards the source of the voice.

"All you had to do was get rid of those vermin from the church, but you couldn't even do _that_ right. Instead you're nearly brought to heel by an Angel."

From behind one of the pillars stepped a man. He was bespectacled and gray-haired, standing of average height, and rather portly; dressed in priest vestments as he was, one could mistake him for a bishop.

"Oh, it's 'ol Valper," Raynare sighed, obviously disappointed and not even acknowledging the cut in her chest from which she bled freely, nor the insults she'd been on the receiving end of. "And I was just getting to chat with my old boyfriend."

 _Valper?_ Issei thought.

"Who the hell are you?" Issei snarled.

At that, the man looked up, a slight grin on his face. "Odd that you don't know, Angel."

Issei started to reply.

But Kiba's scream cut him off before he started.

" _Valper Galilei!_ "

The man turned to look at the Devil, the latter more enraged than Issei had ever seen him. "The one and only," he snorted derisively.

"Valper Galilei!" Xenovia shouted. "Murderer of children! For your crimes I condemn your soul in the name of our God!"

For a moment, Issei did not understand what Xenovia was referring to. The next, a look of pure fury etched itself in his features.

 _This is the mastermind of the Holy Sword Project!_

"I'd love to stay and chat, but we have other things we need to do," Valper continued, his voice thick with contempt for everyone present. "Raynare, do something right for once and get us out of here."

 _No!_

Issei charged, but Explosion's effect had worn off, and a flash blinded him before he was halfway across the courtyard.

By the time he arrived on the opposite side, Raynare and Valper had both vanished into thin air.

"Damn it," Issei muttered under his breath as he made the sword and the Boosted Gear vanish.

When the Angel made his way back towards his compatriots, he did not let any questions come out.

"Guys," Issei said, his voice urgent, "we have to move. We need to find those two and we have to do it _now_ , before they get too far. Let's get going."

Heads nodded, and without another word, the four each ran in a different direction.

* * *

"So no one found any trace of them? Wonderful." Issei asked, his voice exhausted.

The four were once more in Issei's room, in the same positions they had been in before. The unlikely alliance had spent hours running about the town, seeking any hint of the former Fallen Angel and the Archbishop of Annihilation, but their scouring of Kuoh had turned up nothing. All they had to show for their efforts were burning lungs and pained legs.

"So where does that leave us?" Irina asked, her voice hesitant and uncertain.

"It leaves us with a crazed woman with an Excalibur," Xenovia cut in, her hands in her lap. "It leaves us with a man who murdered dozens of children running free. And it leaves us with no clues to go on whatsoever."

Issei shook his head. "What I want to know is why Valper's working with that bitch… what's he got to do with a Fallen Angel and a former one?"

"Well," Kiba reasoned, "from what I understand, collusion among the excommunicated and the excommunicated with the Fallen Angels is pretty common..."

Issei bit his lip, remembering the swarm of rogue exorcists Dulio had defeated with Zenith Tempest. "But _why_? What are they trying to do with those swords? And on that note, what kind of sword was Raynare using that let her move as fast as she did?"

"It was probably Excalibur Rapidly," Irina supplied helpfully. "It's known to massively increase the speed of its wielder, after all."

"Great," Issei said. "Then there's yet another question – how can she even use it to begin with? I thought you had to have some crystal to use a Holy Sword."

Xenovia shrugged. "Issei, this Fallen Angel managed to steal three of the most closely guarded of the church's Holy Swords. It's far from impossible that the thief made off with a few crystals in the process."

The Jack's eyes narrowed. "On that topic, Xenovia, _how_ exactly are those crystals even made? Something else I should know?"

Irina put her hands up, her next words urgent. "Issei, the process doesn't require you hurt anyone. It takes a bunch of people, yeah, but it doesn't require killing them. Valper's research figured out that you need a large amount of a so-called element and specific genetics to wield a Holy Sword – most people have some of each but don't have enough of on their own."

Xenovia nodded. "You can easily extract and concentrate the gene and the element by taking small blood samples from a large number of people. After that's done, all that's left is to crystallize it. It's a process that's harmless to all concerned."

Issei's response, far from being placated, was laced with anger.

"So you're telling me that they kept using that research even after it got a bunch of kids killed?"

"If we didn't," Xenovia snapped, "then those children truly _would_ have died for nothing. And even then, quite a few modern medical techniques have their roots in highly unethical experimentation. Should we discard those as well?"

Issei's mouth opened, then closed again.

Kiba could sense the mounting tension in Issei, and rather than pester him about it, changed the subject to what had come up before. It wouldn't have been his first choice of topic, but he couldn't think of anything else to discuss.

"So, the Boosted Gear. Is it true that it contains the spirit of the Welsh Dragon?"

Issei rolled his eyes. "Ddraig?" he called, addressing the dragon rather than responding to Kiba's question.

 **"What?"** came the surly response of a dragon who clearly did not want to talk.

"Come on out and say hello to our temporary residents."

 **"** **No,"** Ddraig replied flatly, his voice even crankier than it had been before. **"** **Piss off."**

Issei playfully smirked at the back of his hand. "Pretty please?"

 **"** **Did you suddenly have a bout of amnesia and forget** **what "No" means** **?"**

"Have you forgotten that it's rude to tell someone to piss off?" Issei shot back sarcastically, though he was still grinning.

 **"** **Have** _ **you**_ **forgotten that I'm a dragon's consciousness sealed in a magical gauntlet created by the God you serve?"**

Issei's eye twitched as he listened to Ddraig tread very close to _that_ topic, though he kept a look of good humor on his face. "Still rude, though."

 **"** **I don't care. Shut up and go away. I'm trying to sleep."**

With that, Ddraig fell silent.

Looking up, the brunette gave an amused snort. "I think you've got a pretty good idea of what Ddraig is like just from that."

The three other people in the room nodded, though Irina was the only one to speak.

"Is he _always_ that much of a grouch?"

Issei shrugged. "Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Depends on when you catch him, just like us."

* * *

After a few more minutes of discussion, Kiba went home to… wherever it was that he lived. Shortly after, Xenovia and Irina retired to the spare room.

Issei undressed and fell into bed, exhausted, and despite the fear plaguing his mind about Raynare and Valper, he fell asleep very quickly.

* * *

Issei's hatred of his alarm clock seemed to grow larger every single morning he was awoken by it.

Groaning as he turned it off, Issei desperately wished he could just roll over and forget his duties for the day.

Alas, a quick knock at the door dispelled any chance of that, and Issei reluctantly dragged himself from the sheets to answer it.

When he pulled back the door, Issei was confronted by exactly who he expected.

"What's up, Irina?"

His old childhood friend looked him over, an odd look in her eye, before she addressed him. "Issei, Xenovia and I were going to keep sweeping Kuoh while you're at school. You're fine with that, right?"

The Angel shrugged. "You don't need my permission, Irina. I'm not your boss, after all; I'm just auxiliary support. It's still _your_ mission. How you approach it is up to you – though again, like I said..."

Irina nodded, understanding immediately that the brunette was referring to his two "conditions" again. "We'll keep things as quiet as we can, Issei."

Issei nodded in return. "If you guys _do_ need help, text me. I'll have my phone on vibrate, and I'll find a way to… _excuse_ myself from class, even if it gets me in trouble."

Irina's head bobbed once more before she disappeared back down the hall.

Her old friend sighed and retreated back into his room to get ready for school, not enjoying this constant balancing act in the slightest.

* * *

It took everything Issei had to keep calm and quiet during the day. He did not care a whiff for the mathematics or science his teachers were attempting to instruct him about. Not when he had two people he'd promised to protect potentially risking their lives searching for a madwoman and psychotic ex-bishop.

Issei did not see the Devils at school, and Kiba was particularly conspicuous by his absence. Schoolgirls wailed childishly at that note while schoolboys celebrated. Issei did neither, knowing the truth of both of their worlds and of Kiba's tortured past.

Instead, Issei wondered if he had joined the exorcists in their hunt for their quarry.

* * *

Issei's dread was, upon a cursory glance at home, unfounded. Xenovia and Kiba were already in his room, though Issei had no idea if he had entered through a magic circle or one of the actual doors. The blue-haired exorcist and Gremory Knight were in casual discussion over sword technique when Issei returned.

"Any luck hunting, you two?" the brunette asked as he set his school items down.

"Negative," Kiba replied. "Even skipped school to try and find them and still had no luck." A wry, humorless grin came over his face at this. "Rias is going to kill me when she finds out."

"Wouldn't be so sure," Issei replied easily, having thought as much of Kiba's whereabouts. "I didn't see her at all today. None of the Devils were there, actually – that or they gained the ability to turn invisible when I wasn't around."

Xenovia gave a slightly amused snort.

Issei's face suddenly lost all humor as he realized something.

"Hey, where's Irina?"

Both Devil and exorcist shrugged. "We fanned out to cover more ground," Xenovia explained. "Irina went alone while Kiba acted as a guide for me. Irina knows this town far better than I, after all."

"Any word from her?" Issei asked.

Xenovia nodded. "I received a text from her about twenty minutes ago. She's decided to extend her search, apparently."

Issei nodded, but something about this easy explanation did not sit right with him.

* * *

Throughout the afternoon, as the three waited for nightfall, there was no sign of Irina anywhere, and the trio grew increasingly worried. Issei bolted through his dinner at a speed that left him feeling physically ill, so great was his nervousness.

With he, Kiba and Xenovia all seated in the room, they chatted about nothing as the sun slowly slipped beneath the horizon, each growing more afraid for Irina's safety by the second.

Finally, just past sundown, Issei could not wait any longer.

"We need to go loo-" he began to say, interrupting Xenovia, before cutting himself off as something washed over him.

It was the same dread he had felt when he had raided the church. The one he had been swamped by in the presence of Azazel.

While not quite as strong as the latter's case, the dread utterly dwarfed the former.

With the slightest flick of his eyes, Issei looked at Rias Gremory's Knight, who nodded.

Issei shot over to the window and threw it open with such force that he was partly surprised it did not snap off of its hinges. Sticking his head out, he frantically looked up and down the street. For a few moments, he saw no sign of the source.

Then against the moon, he saw the silhouette of a person hanging in midair, framed by ten wings.

* * *

 _And cut._


	26. The Main Mistake

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei did not bother running down the stairs and out the front door. After spreading his wings, he simply jumped out the open window, gliding down to the pavement below. Kiba, Devil wings extended, followed suit almost immediately after, whilst Xenovia simply jumped straight to the street, taking the force of the landing in stride.

"Well, well, well," came the figure's deep, booming voice. "So I finally meet the Angel I've heard so much complaining about. Greetings, Issei Hyoudou."

The figure descended lower, allowing the group to make the figure out in more detail.

The Fallen Angel's face was roughly cut, hard lines creating a cruel countenance upon which a satisfied smirk was etched. His ears drew back into points, protruding from lengthy black hair that extended to just past his shoulders.

At his torso, the Fallen Angel held a figure none could quite make out with its legs facing them.

"Who the hell are you?" Issei demanded, already fairly certain the ten-winged Fallen Angel was the one behind the whole mess.

"A pity you don't know me, boy," came the smug reply. "It might save me a moment's boredom. But to remedy your ignorance, I am Kokabiel, one of the cadres of the Fallen Angels."

"So," Kiba inferred, his voice venomous, "you're the one who started all this, aren't you?"

A cold snort escaped the cadre. "Indeed. You'd think Michael would care more for those swords. I was sure that by stealing them I could goad him into attacking me, but instead I just get a two-winged Angel and a pair of lousy exorcists. Heaven must be short of actual force."

"You crazy bastard!" Issei yelled. "Are you _trying_ to start another war?"

Issei fully expected that he would receive a "no", and then some rant of the true reason for the cadre's actions.

What he did not expect was for Kokabiel to throw his head back and begin cackling like a demented circus clown.

"Why, got it in one!" Kokabiel laughed. "I've been so very _bored_ since the last round ended, and your appearance hasn't helped that. I could slaughter you all right here."

Issei's eyes narrowed. "So why don't you?"

Kokabiel chuckled darkly. "Because I have a _far_ better idea. You there, Devil. Is your King not Rias Gremory?"

Kiba blinked. "What about her?"

"So if I kill her and rampage at that school of yours… no, better to destroy this entire worthless town. _That_ would get the Devil King's attention, certainly!"

Kiba's eyes flared wide. "Leave her alone, you piece of shit!"

"Try and make me," the Fallen Angel sneered. "The worlds as you understand them end tonight."

Kokabiel then flew upwards momentarily, before seeming to reconsider and dropping once more.

"Oh, I almost forgot," he said, his voice laced with sadistic amusement. "Here, a parting gift from me."

With that, he chucked the figure at Issei, who frantically flew up to catch whoever it was. And as soon as the body reached his arms, the brunette nearly vomited.

Irina Shidou's unconscious and broken form lay in his arms, cut in more places than he could count and her form-fitting clothes shredded. Her bare flesh lay exposed, but there was nothing erotic about the sight. Even as he held her, he felt her blood drip off of her. Some ran down his arms in rivulets, crimson snakes seeking escape from their cage of blood vessels. In other places, it smeared his clothing a deep scarlet.

"Irina!" Issei, Kiba and Xenovia all screamed simultaneously.

"I caught her snooping where she wasn't wanted," Kokabiel said contemptuously, though his face was still set in a wicked grin. "Be grateful I didn't have Raynare kill her."

At those words, Kokabiel raced off through the night sky, far too quickly for any of the three he had left behind to catch.

* * *

As soon as Issei landed, he took control of the situation, though not intentionally. He simply barked out an order, and both Devil and exorcist immediately complied.

"You two, get to the Academy! Either we stop him there or we're all dead!"

"Issei!" Xenovia cried. "What about Irina?!"

Issei gritted his teeth. "I'll handle her."

Before either could say anything in response, both Issei and Irina had vanished into a cross.

* * *

Issei raced into First Heaven, having bolted by the gate and the Angels guarding it even as they called after him. As he entered the gathering hall, he felt eyes immediately dart towards him, then to the bleeding girl he held in his arms.

A few seconds after, the silence was broken by an Angel he knew to be Michael's Jack, standing and running towards him.

"Issei, what happened to her?!" the Angel shouted to Gabriel's enigmatic Jack, pointing at Irina as he ran towards the two of them.

"Encounter with a Fallen Angel," Issei snapped harshly. "Look, there's no time! She needs medical treatment, _now_!"

"We might be able to help you with that."

The few Angels in the gathering hall all stopped at the booming voice, as an enormous cross and a much smaller one appeared in the exact center of the hall.

A moment later, the crosses assumed human forms.

From the larger one formed a tall, blonde-haired man Issei had never seen. Clean-shaven, his hair was tied back in a ponytail, longer and thicker than even Gabriel's blonde head of hair. He was dressed in simple, white robes, common among Angels.

The smaller cross, in contrast, assumed a form the Jack of Hearts knew quite well.

"Asia!"

The man chuckled, his voice booming through the hall. "Well, Asia, it seems we have a patient."

The man looked to Issei, before he revealed his wings.

All twelve of them.

"Raphael, patron of doctors, at your service."

"I'd bow, sir," Issei said, "but we really don't have time. She needs help!"

The man nodded and strode over to the Jack, taking a quick examination of Irina's bleeding body.

"Hmm… she'll live, but she definitely needs these wounds dressed before she loses more blood. Take my hand, Issei, and I'll take you both to Fifth Heaven."

He and Asia both did so, and the three vanished into a cross a moment later.

* * *

Upon their reformation, Issei's eyes were greeted by the sight of what appeared to be a state-of-the-art hospital wing. Raphael, however, did not bother to stop at the desk near the front, register a name, or anything of the sort, and the other Angels within refrained from stopping the Seraph or the two Angels following him.

After passing through another hallway, Raphael threw open a door, exposing a modern hospital bedroom. Upon doing so, the Seraph gestured to the bed.

"Put her down. Gently."

The brunette Angel did so, and Asia and Raphael very quickly went to work, the former healing injuries with Twilight Healing as the Seraph wrote notes on a clipboard, detailing the exact descriptions of every wound on Irina's body.

"Issei, who is this?" the blonde nun asked, both for her benefit and the Seraph's.

"She's one of the exorcists who was sent to Kuoh," Issei said, his voice pained. "She got attacked when I wasn't around..."

"Not your fault, Issei," Raphael responded, not looking up from his clipboard. "You can't be there all the time, and I can tell you right now that she'll make a full recovery. You did the right thing to bring her here."

Issei took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "How did you two know I was coming?"

A slight chuckle escaped the Seraph. "We got a call from the Angels guarding the gate about the Jack rushing past with an injured girl. It took about two seconds for us to decide to come looking."

"Thank you, Lord Raph-" Issei started, only to be cut off by the same Seraph.

"Raphael. I'm not one for formalities. All it does is drive a wedge between us and the lower-ranking Angels. Not that you'll ever convince my siblings, of course – I've been trying for millennia and I haven't gotten anywhere."

Despite the situation, Issei gave a slight chuckle, before Raphael's next words killed any humor in the situation.

"Wait a minute..." Raphael murmured as he looked over the injured exorcist. "Issei, you said this was one of the exorcists sent to Kuoh?"

"Yeah… what about her?"

"Issei," Raphael said, turning to him with concern etched into his face, "where's her sword?"

The Jack of Hearts blinked. "I… don't know. What about it?"

"Issei, if this was one of the exorcists sent to Kuoh, then she was entrusted with one of the Excalibur swords for her mission. Those are _incredibly_ powerful weapons, and it being in the wrong hands could spell disaster."

For a moment, Issei said nothing as he put the pieces together, before he spoke up, his voice panicked.

"Shit… Kokabiel must've stolen it!"

As these words left his mouth, Issei assumed the cross's form and vanished from the room.

"Issei, wait!" Raphael called, before grinding his teeth in frustration as the cross disappeared. "That fool… why do I bother…?"

The Seraph shook his head, shifting his attention back to the pigtailed girl on the bed and blocking the Jack's actions from his mind.

He had a patient to attend to, after all.

* * *

 _And cut._


	27. Two With Three

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

As soon as Issei arrived at Kuoh Academy, he was greeted by a sight that simultaneously was and was not welcome.

"Kiba, why'd you get _all_ of them? You know that that's _exactly_ what Kokabiel wants, right? To kill Rias and Sona and get the Devil Kings involved?"

Before him, at the front gate of the school, stood Rias, Sona, and every member of both of their peerages. Xenovia stood off to the side, refusing to mingle with the group of Devils.

Rias shook her head. "Issei, use your head. If you three try to take on Kokabiel on your lonesome, he'll demolish you guys. You need backup, and we're all you've got until my brother arrives."

Issei blinked. "When's that gonna be?"

The crimson-haired Devil exhaled slowly. "About an hour. Sona and her peerage will be maintaining a barrier over the school; hopefully that will limit the damage Kokabiel can do. In the meantime, _we_ , by which I mean me, my peerage, Xenovia and you, have to keep him distracted. How… I have no idea."

Issei winced at that.

It was then that Xenovia cut in urgently. "Issei, what about Irina? Is she going to be okay?"

Issei nodded at the blue-haired exorcist. "Yeah, Lord Raphael said she should be fine. Just needs to be patched up..."

Xenovia took a relieved breath.

* * *

After this, the group who knew they were effectively glorified cannon fodder walked into the school gate.

Seconds later, a gigantic, glowing barrier appeared over the school.

Issei, for a short moment, turned his head back and locked eyes with Sona, who was working hard to keep the barrier up.

Sona simply nodded at him.

* * *

"Valper, how long until it's done?" Kokabiel growled, seated on his throne floating in midair.

"No more than a couple of minutes," the former Archbishop said gleefully, looking up at the Fallen Angel cadre with a demented smile on his face.

"What the hell's going on?!" Issei yelled at both of them as they entered the sports field.

Before Valper, four swords hung in midair, each surrounded by a glow as they hovered above a magic circle. Valper's wicked grin turned towards him.

"Oh, nothing much, Angel. We're just doing a little repair work, that's all. Fusing these Excaliburs back together."

At those words, both Issei and Kiba rushed towards the demented man, swords forming in their hands even as they ran.

Unfortunately for them, however, Kokabiel chose that moment to intervene.

A blast of magical energy the size of a small house crossed their running path, and both Angel and Devil were only barely able to skid to a halt as an enormous crater was suddenly blasted out of the ground.

When the dust cleared, they caught the faintest glimpse of a gigantic spear of light planted directly in its center just as it dissipated.

Issei's head turned, eyes fixated in horror at Kokabiel, who sat on his throne with a disinterested look on his face.

"How dull," the Fallen Angel sarcastically commented. "One little spear and you two lose your nerve."

 _He calls a spear that big "little"?!_ _H_ _ow strong_ _ **is**_ _he?!_ Issei thought, his mind struggling to stay focused. The Jack of Hearts would never admit it, but he was absolutely terrified of the Fallen Angel seated in the midair throne after this display of power. Kiba's expression suggested similar feelings.

"No matter," Kokabiel continued on, his voice making his boredom clear. "Let's see if you can entertain me. I've brought a little pet from Hell for you to play with. Do show me a fun time, won't you?" With that, the Fallen Angel snapped his fingers.

From the center of the crater, what could only be described a cyclone of flame suddenly burst from the ground. Then, from within the hole and the fire, Issei and Kiba watched in horror as an enormous, shadowy claw burst from the ground. Steadily, it pulled up the rest of its body, revealing its snarling, black-furred head.

Or rather, its _three_ snarling, black-furred heads.

A moment later, the beast tore loose from the earth, and the fire vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. All that was left was the enormous, three-headed guard of the Underworld jumping towards the group.

"Cerberus?" Rias cried even as the group scattered, whether on the ground or to the air, to avoid being pounced on. "You'd bring a creature like that to this realm, Kokabiel?!"

All she received in reply was a deep chuckle.

In the meantime, Issei let the gauntlet manifest, and soon enough he heard what he'd come to regard as one of the most wonderful sounds in existence: **"BOOST!"** After, Issei spread his wings and took to the air, light sword in hand, to attack the dog from above.

The Angel never came anywhere close, however, as he found himself having to dodge jets of flame being spurted from one of the heads. He could feel the blazing heat begin to singe his feathers, and he knew that if he was caught in the flames, that would be the end of his tenure as a Brave Saint.

 **"BOOST!"**

"That's the first interesting thing I've seen tonight," Kokabiel commented as he watched the Angel dodge plumes of fire. "An Angel wielding the famous Boosted Gear. Too bad about the host, though."

As this occurred, Rias and Akeno had both taken flight as well. Each countered the other two head's worth of fire with a mix of their own magic, which took the form of some sort of black-red energy and what appeared to be lightning, respectively. Koneko, for her part, struck the beast with her bare hands, creating blasts that didn't seem to do anything to the guard of Underworld's gates.

Kiba and Xenovia, meanwhile, had drawn their swords and were cutting the beast where they could, but neither could make the wounds stick for long. Even Xenovia, with her Excalibur, could barely do anything to the animal; either she was having trouble pulling out the sword's supposed power or simply needed a spare second to do it that she did not have.

 **"** **BOOST!"**

Issei barely had time to put up a light barrier as another blazing jet roared towards him. Even as it spread around him, he could feel its scorching heat, to the point he was genuinely surprised to find that his wings had not caught fire.

It was as he looked at Xenovia that he reconsidered his earlier thought. If Xenovia just needed a bit of time...

 _Maybe I can buy her that secon_ _d if she buys_ _ **me**_ _one…_

 **"** **BOOST!"**

"Xenovia! Kiba!" Issei yelled down to the exorcist and Knight.

Both turned to look at him as they dodged a swipe of the dog's claws. "What do you want, Issei? Can't you see we're a bit busy?!" Kiba shouted back.

"Guys, I have an idea!" Issei loudly replied. "I need you two to distract the head that's attacking me for a minute, got it?"

They spared no more than a glance at Issei, but even from this distance, he could see the two's heads nod.

Soon enough, the two danced in front of the head of the three-headed dog, taking slight stabs at its snout and expertly dodging its blows. The head's focus, in turn, shifted to the two forms in front of it with the oddly sharp sticks that they insisted on poking it with.

With the few free seconds, Issei wasted no time forming as many long, razor-thin spears as he could force himself to, about three dozen in total. Even as they hovered in midair, he knew that the tactic was reckless; he was doing quite a number on his magical reserves to summon this many light spears at once. Yet he saw no other options to quell the rampaging dog.

 **"** **BOOST!"**

"All of you guys, _get clear_!" Issei shouted, causing the entire group to look up and take in the sight of thirty-six or so spears of light all hanging above the guard dog of the Underworld. A heartbeat later, they scattered once more, needing no further instruction.

Even as they moved, Issei commanded the spears to fall.

Cerberus, as it turned out, was not nearly so maneuverable as his great legs would suggest. Even as he attempted to leap after them, the lines of light met his fur, then pierced his skin like a hypodermic needle to human flesh. They did little damage, but inflicted enormous pain to even the enormous three-headed mutt; as a creature of the Underworld, light was a pure poison to it.

For a few precious seconds, even as its wounds began to heal, the dog lay immobilized from the agony.

"Xenovia, _now_!" Issei screamed.

Xenovia, being a highly trained church exorcist, was already in motion even before Issei said anything; gracefully, she leaped through the air, and with the training of a person who had been instructed in sword combat from childhood, brought the weapon down on the three-headed canine.

The dog was enveloped by a blinding light as a concussive blast echoed through the yard.

When the light faded, all that was left was another massive crater where Cerberus had been.

* * *

 **"** **BOOST!"**

Issei allowed himself a grin as he looked at Kokabiel. "What do you think about that, huh?" he taunted, knowing he did not sound tough in the slightest and not caring.

Kokabiel, however, responded by grinning right back. "I _think_ ," he sneered, "you shouldn't party just yet. You're not finished." He pointed behind Issei.

When Issei and the rest turned, what they saw was a most unwelcome sight: Another cyclone of fire, from which emerged a new Cerberus a few seconds later.

 **"BOOST!"**

"You brought _how_ many of these things?" Issei snapped at Kokabiel, who just laughed.

"Oh, don't be that way," Kokabiel cackled. "I only brought two for you to play with, if it makes you feel better!"

 **"** **Issei,"** Ddraig suddenly spoke up. **"You've boosted seven times now. Killing this dog should be no issue if you** **go about** **it right."**

Issei blinked, before his face reformed its grin as a simple strategy formed in his mind. "Yeah. I think I've got it..."

Issei straightened his back and posture in midair, held in place by wings that were blackened at the tips. "All you guys, keep that thing busy a minute!"

The group didn't need to be told that, however, as the second Cerberus had leaped towards them and assumed the previous one's strategy of fire and claw.

Issei used the opportunity to fly over the back of the Cerberus, whose heads were too distracted by its harassers nearer to and on the ground to notice an Angel high above. Once he was in position, the Jack of Hearts formed, with some effort, a large spear that he had practiced making with Dulio.

"You thinking what I'm thinking, Ddraig?"

 **"** **Oh yes, partner. Send this pup back to hell."**

With that, Issei lobbed the spear with all his strength towards the three-headed dog.

 **"** **TRANSFER!"**

As the word blasted across the ears of those listening and not, the spear grew. Oh, did it grow.

From a length of about two meters, the spear grew to several times that size as it flew down to earth, becoming the length of a bus and a meter wide on its way.

The group of fighters distracting it had but a few precious heartbeats to see it coming and get as far from it as they could.

Even then, Koneko, Xenovia and Kiba were tossed back by the blast of the spear crashing into the ground like a bomb dropped from an airplane.

Cerberus was not so lucky; it never knew what hit it.

Another blinding flash. And then, another crater with no dog in it.

* * *

"Well," Issei said as he landed, "that went better than I'd have hoped."

"Yeah," Rias replied, her voice somewhat pleased but tinged with unmissable annoyance. "Though next time you want to throw giant spears of light around, Issei, _please_ give us a little warning first."

The rest of her peerage nodded at that, and Issei gave an embarrassed chuckle.

"Regardless," Xenovia replied, a rare smile on her face, "that was quite the spectacular display. I thank you, Issei."

"If you'd stop patting each other on the back," Kokabiel cut in, clearly _still_ bored despite the chaos that had ensued below, "I'd appreciate it. You've won nothing yet."

"Yeah?" Issei called cockily. "We just knocked out two dogs from hell. I'd say we've won a bit!"

"It's done."

All heads snapped towards the sudden voice, realizing a fraction of a second later that it was coming from the crazed man in priest vestments that they had forgotten about during all the fighting.

Before him, there were no longer four swords.

There was only one.

* * *

 _And cut._


	28. Contrast Destructor

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"The ritual is complete," Valper said, his voice deranged. "The ritual to fuse the four swords is done. This whole town will be leveled in twenty minutes."

Issei's mouth dropped open in horror, something the psychopathic Archbishop noticed.

"And the only way to cancel that?" he said mockingly, his eyes cruel. "Defeat Kokabiel." Valper threw his head back and laughed as all heads snapped towards the Fallen Angel cadre seated on the midair throne, that same mocking grin on the latter's face.

Issei held that look for only a moment before he turned his eyes back to the sword, mind panicking over Valper's words.

 _Twenty minutes?! We won't have time to wait for those reinforcements! We have to take this bastard down ourselves… but_ _ **how**_ _?_

The sword before Valper was of a bizarre construction; it appeared to be attempting to mix attributes of a scimitar with a large broadsword, to the point one would think the designer was suffering an identity crisis. It appeared horrifically impractical for actual combat.

But every person present knew that appearances meant nothing when it came to Holy Swords. They were all aware of just how dangerous the blessed metallic monstrosity likely was.

"Raynare?" Kokabiel called.

"You called?" came the insane reply.

Seemingly from nowhere, the former Fallen Angel appeared. One second she was not there. The next, her hand was clamped around the handle of the fused Excalibur.

"For some last minute entertainment," Kokabiel yawned, "demonstrate the power of the fused Excalibur to our friends here." The cadre's face twisted into a grin. "You can start with the Angel, if you'd like."

The instant Raynare heard those words, she blasted towards Issei.

" _Time to die, loverboy!_ " she screamed, her voice having shed any remaining tendrils of sanity.

Issei barely had time to raise his sword to deflect the strike that came his way, but luckily for him, Raynare had overshot him in a glancing strike, giving him just enough time to leap back into the air.

" _Do you think you can run from me_?" Raynare giggled, before Issei and the Devils witnessed something they believed impossible.

The sword itself began to extend away from Raynare, splitting into multiple lines of pure light and chasing Issei into the night sky. Even as he batted them away, Issei felt genuine fear for the sword Raynare carried race through his mind, and he knew that with his weakened reserves, he had little time to find a way to stop the Excalibur.

As this occurred, the Devils felt utterly helpless; every time they attempted to attack Raynare, she simply dodged out of the way and continued her relentless assault upon Issei, their speeds no match for the insane pace that Raynare's Excalibur let her move at.

* * *

Kiba, for his part, ignored all of this chaos. Instead he walked, pace by pace, towards the man that was responsible for it all. For the nightmare. For the project. For the deaths of his friends. He stalked towards the man, murderous intent in his gaze.

Yet he did not draw a sword.

His lips drew breath, and expelled words that, despite their relative calm, were so full of fury they could have blackened the sun.

"Valper Galilei..."

The man turned to stare at the blonde-haired Devil, his gaze a pure reflection of evil.

"I am a survivor of the Holy Sword Project..." Kiba hissed. "No, more accurately… I'm something you _murdered_ , reborn as a Devil. And I have one question for you…"

"Oh?"

" _Why?!_ " Kiba screamed. "Why did you _murder all of us_?!"

"Hmph…" Valper replied. "A survivor of the project, hmm? I had heard one of the subjects escaped… too bad, you really should have stayed dead. Thanks to you all, though, I _was_ able to complete the project."

"After you decided we were failures and killed all of us!" Kiba shouted.

"Oh, come now, boy," Valper said, his voice filled with a sick amusement. "I'd found the gene and element I needed and figured I could just extract it. What _else_ was I going to do with you? You were raw materials for a project. Nothing more. Be grateful; thanks to you, my research was able to develop this."

At that, the demented Archbishop drew something from his coat and held it up. "These crystals are what let the church use Holy Swords en masse. All thanks to my research… though Michael himself condemned me even as they continued to use my research anyway. Those _hypocrites_..."

Kiba could not even form coherent sentences at this point, so great was his rage.

"You know, it's funny," Valper laughed. "That one, right there." He pointed at Raynare as she continued to to attempt to kill Issei. "She took three crystals without flinching even when the other guys we were going to use died. I guess that's the strength of hatred."

"You..." Kiba spat. "You piece of utter _shit_..."

Valper snorted. "Here, boy. You can have this dreg. It's just a shell at this point, anyway."

He threw the crystal to the blonde-haired Devil.

Kiba bent down slightly, taking this so-called element and the crystallized genetics of his dead comrades into his hands. As he did so, tears began to flow down his face as he stared at the crystal.

"Everyone..." he whispered, only to himself. "Everyone… I'm sorry… why did I get to live when none of you did? Some of you had more dreams than me… wanted to live more than me… I… Please forgive me… I'm so sorry..."

* * *

Kiba's eyes had not moved up. He had not noticed what had drawn the attention of all the others, sans Raynare's and half of Issei's.

He had not noticed the lights that had begun to dance around him.

It was only when he heard the voice that he looked up – a voice he had believed he would never hear again.

Then another.

And another.

When Kiba looked up, he saw an impossible sight within the lights – one visible only to his own eyes.

The lights had assumed the forms of people. Of his comrades, his friends, his fellow test subjects. They stood around him, all smiling and looking at him.

"Live," encouraged a girl, as she wrapped him in an ethereal hug.

"We've accepted the Holy Sword," came a boy's voice.

"It's too late for us," said another girl. "But it's not too late for you."

"Even if there's no God watching over us..." said a fourth child. "We'll always be one. We'll always be with you."

Kiba's tears slowly began to dry as he heard the words from the souls of his fellows. Listened to their words. Their encouragements. Their urges to him to live.

Slowly, shakily, he got to his feet, steadily calming his mind and feeling something… odd begin to flow through him.

From the outside, the others could only watch in confusion as Kiba had become lost among the shining points of light. Seconds crawled by as Kiba held himself on his knees, grasping the crystal in clenched fists.

Then, quite suddenly, the lights began to fade, and Rias Gremory's Knight began to rise to his feet.

As he did so, demonic power began to flow out of him in a titanic surge.

"What's going on?!" Issei, Rias and Valper all shouted simultaneously. Even Raynare froze at the energy coming from the blonde-haired Devil, but Issei was too spellbound by what he was witnessing Kiba do to care.

 **"** **Partner,"** Ddraig suddenly said. **"It seems that the Gremory Knight has peaked."**

"Peaked? What do you mean by that?" Issei demanded, never once taking his eyes off of Kiba.

 **"** **Remember that the Sacred Gears respond to a host's** **feelings and thoughts. It appears that this boy possesses one, which would explain** **how he makes his swords."**

"Yeah? So?"

 **"** **You forget the next domain."**

Issei's eyes widened. "You're saying..."

* * *

Kiba stepped forwards, taking paces towards the psychotic Archbishop even as the energy blasted the entire field.

"My comrades… they never wanted me to wish for revenge… they wanted me to be free… but I'm not." His eyes looked to Valper. They were still filled with rage, but it was no longer the impotent fear of one without strength confronting one with it.

Instead, it was the gaze of a person who knew they held life and death in their hands. "First I need to destroy this evil in front of me… then no one else will have to suffer..."

A large, red circle appeared before Kiba, steadily rising to reveal an enormous sword.

Valper took a fearful step backwards, his countenance no longer the cruel smirk it had been before. Now, it was nothing but the terrified cowering of a sheep before a wolf.

"No one but _you_ ," Kiba finished, even as Valper gave a terrified cry for Raynare. A moment later, she appeared in front of Valper, albeit reluctantly. As she began to rant her hatred for everyone present, Kiba raised his sword to the sky.

"For all of my fallen friends… for Rias, my king… _Sword Birth_!"

At those words, everyone fell silent once more as the sword became enveloped by two contrasting colors of magical energy – one, the color of shadow, the other, the color of Issei's unharmed wings. The colors clashed, swirled around one another, chased each other, fed on one another, melded together.

When they faded, the sword had changed.

One half of the blade was an ebony darker than the night itself; the other, an ivory of blinding purity. Up the center ran a glowing red.

"The Sword of Betrayer!" Kiba boasted. "A sword infused with both Holy and Devil powers – try and stop it!"

"How is that -" Rias started, before Issei cut her off.

"I get it now… Ddraig was saying Kiba had peaked… that sword is Kiba's Balance Breaker!"

Rias gasped. "You're… you're kidding..."

Issei was not, nor was Kiba.

The blonde Devil, sword in hand, slowly marched toward Raynare, who even through her insanity, recognized what should have been impossible and was stunned.

"A Holy-Devil sword?!" came Valper's shocked cry. "That's impossible! Those are two opposing elements! They cannot mix!"

As if from nowhere, Xenovia began to walk alongside Kiba, speaking to him with each step.

"Talk to me, Knight of Rias Gremory. Are we still fighting on the same side?"

"I'd like to think we are," came his answer, his eyes not moving one inch from Valper and Raynare.

"Then let us destroy that Excalibur together," Xenovia said. "I understand we're technically looking at a Holy Sword, but there's nothing Holy about that."

The blue-haired exorcist halted her step, shut her eyes, and stretched her arm towards thin air. "Oh Peter," she murmured. "Oh Basillius and Dionysius, and the blessed Virgin Mary… I ask you to please hear my prayers!"

It was then that a new symbol formed in the air before her hand. A symbol of Heaven.

An instant later, a sword, bound in chains, emerged. It was a deep azure, trimmed with gold and absolutely enormous, dwarfing the Excalibur fusion held by Raynare.

"In the name of the Saint living within this blade," Xenovia finished as her hand clasped around the hilt, "I hereby set you free!"

The chains holding the sword snapped, and Xenovia took the sword into her own two hands. "This blade is called Durandal!"

Issei's eyes flared as he remembered the names that Dulio had drilled into his head, struggling for a moment to remember the sword's attributes before Akeno unintentionally filled him in.

"The sword said to slice everything in this world…?!"

It was then that Issei remembered what Dulio had said about it. How it was incredibly "picky" about its wielders, and how there were very few in the church it had ever obeyed. How it had to be stored in another dimension lest it destroy everything in this one.

"That's impossible!" Valper cried for the second time inside three minutes. "My research didn't go into how to use Durandal! You shouldn't be able to wield that thing at all!"

Xenovia smirked. "Not true. Unlike Irina or Kiba, I'm one of the rarely found naturals. I didn't need a crystal."

 _Xenovia's a true Holy Sword user?!_ Issei thought, absolutely flabbergasted.

"This blade cuts everything it touches to pieces… when it listens to me, of course."

"Bullshit!" Raynare suddenly screamed, breaking her silence and attempting to hack Xenovia into pieces with a sword extension, much the same way she had attempted to do to Issei.

Xenovia, however, easily countered every strike. "What you have is simply a broken Holy Sword. It's no match for Durandal."

With that, she cut the extensions apart with the ease she might bend string.

Raynare attempted to charge her foe next, but unfortunately for her, Kiba cut in. No words were exchanged between the two as he did so.

One slice against Kiba's sword, and the fused Excalibur was damaged. Two, it was nearly broken.

On the third, it shattered back into its cores.

For a moment, Raynare simply stared at her sword hilt, mouth agape, before she stood up and attempted to run.

She was immediately stopped by Xenovia, who held her in place with Durandal's blade. Xenovia did not bother to dignify Raynare with a boast of her power or the sword's.

Kiba, meanwhile, turned to face Valper, his face holding a grim look.

"Prepare yourself, Valper Galilei, for oblivion."

For a moment, Valper stared at the ground, not speaking.

Then, to the confusion of all, he began babbling excitedly to himself.

"Yes, I understand now! If the balance between Holy and Devil powers is disrupted, that sword could be possible! Which means not only the Devil Kings but also -"

His sentence, and his life, were suddenly and brutally cut short by an enormous spear of light piercing through his back, spreading blood all over the grass and leaving a massive hole in his torso.

An instant later, a cold chuckle escaped its thrower as he floated down to about three meters off the ground.

"Oh, Valper," Kokabiel cooed. "You really were very talented. Unfortunately for you, though… you weren't supposed to figure that part out."

Kiba, for his part, felt little to no anger, despite being denied his revenge; in some ways, watching the blood of the man who had caused so much torment and suffering spill from his brutally mauled corpse was reward enough.

Rias, meanwhile, immediately began demanding questions of the cadre.

"Okay, Kokabiel, what's really going on here? What are you trying to do?"

Another cold chuckle escaped Kokabiel before he replied. "Before I answer that, why don't we finish what's on our plates right now?" He looked to Raynare's pinned and terrified form, then gestured to Issei, still hanging in midair.

"Come here, Angel. There's nowhere left for her to hide. Nowhere left to run."

Raynare could not speak for the sword pressing against her throat, but her eyes indicated disbelief at another perceived betrayal by her supposed comrades.

* * *

Issei hesitated for a moment, before he slowly descended to the ground, but he did not hide his wings or halo.

"I must say," Kokabiel said, his voice holding contempt, "when I found out what _she_ had done, even _I_ thought it was a bit sick. I may be a Fallen Angel, but even _I_ have standards." He pointed to his old comrade, sneering. "If you believe nothing else I tell you tonight, Angel, believe this. Killing her won't make your wings flicker once."

"And why would you want me to do that?" Issei demanded. "Why'd you take her in?"

Kokabiel shrugged. "She was a means to an end, nothing more. I've gotten all my use out of her. So go on. You may have your revenge, boy."

* * *

For several moments, Issei stood still, to the point several thought he had lost his nerve.

Then, the Jack of Hearts began slowly walking towards Raynare.

Only then did Xenovia remove her sword, too late to let the one-handed lunatic run away.

It was rather strange to Issei. He remembered how furious he had been when he had fought her in the old courtyard. When he had confronted her in Second Heaven. When he had clashed with her in the church's basement. When she had snatched Asia from near the fountain. She had seemed so eminently and obviously evil in her intentions that anger seemed the only logical response.

Now, however, she seemed more pathetic, an ineffectual creature with delusions of being more. Issei no longer felt any of the rage that had flooded through him on any of those previous occasions.

Instead, there was just a cold, grim acceptance of what needed to be done, for the sake of everyone else.

To no one's surprise, Raynare was back to begging for her life.

"Issei, please… don't do this..." she whimpered, in the "Yuuma" voice she had used months earlier to deceive him. The one she had lured him to his doom with.

The Angel, however, was having none of it as he stood over her. He did not bother speaking as he formed a sword of light in his hand.

"Issei, please! I'll do anyth-" Raynare begged, before she suddenly ceased, courtesy of the sword that had just split her head in two. Her features were frozen as they were, in shock and utter horror.

Issei's wings did not flicker even a single time, just as Kokabiel had promised they wouldn't.

* * *

For a moment or two, Issei stood there, as though he was a puppet, waiting for the command of unseen strings to make him dance. He waited to feel something. Anything.

There was nothing. No joy. No relief. No happiness. No satisfaction. Not even the feeling of weight leaving his shoulders.

Instead, there was only a single memory. It was not one of Raynare, however.

It was of Dulio.

 _Feel better now?_

"No..." Issei breathed, his voice so quiet none could hear him. Yet Dulio's answer rang clear anyway.

 _You never do after that sort of thing._

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Yes, portraying Raynare as being basically incompetent with the Excaliburs is intentional. Good night._


	29. A Decision of Loyalty

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For a few seconds, Issei took in Raynare's horrified visage as her blood ran freely from the split that his sword, still embedded in her skull, had created. His clothes were spattered with drops of his killer's blood, yet his own eyes reflected nothing. No happiness, no anger, no peace, no regret. They were simply… _vacant_.

Kiba looked on in shock, the Gremory Knight shaken by the gruesome and merciless efficiency with which his schoolmate had dispatched Raynare. He knew Issei as a mostly friendly, affable Angel with a surprising amount of skill with a sword and a hatred of violence; to see him cut down a person without any ability to fight back, even as she begged him for mercy, was genuinely rattling for him.

Xenovia, while not particularly distressed by the act itself, found it unnerving for different reasons. Within her own mind, she remembered when he had met them in the church and treated them as equals and friends. How he had let them stay at his home. How he had arranged the meeting between Devils and exorcists and managed to keep it from exploding into violence. How he had prioritized their safety over the success of their holy mission.

But then the blue-haired exorcist looked over the scene before her, of Issei's sword of light skewered through the middle of his defeated opponent's brain, and found something inherently irreconcilable about the his handling of those situations; it was as though in the instant it had taken Issei to form his sword, the kindhearted teen who wanted only peace had vanished, and had been replaced instead by a vengeful, ominous winged figure, utterly without even a shred of mercy or sympathy. She did, of course, understand the clinical aspect of his reasoning, but it was shocking for her to witness Issei's personality switch so suddenly.

Rias stared at Issei, horrified not by Issei's heartless act of killing, but by the sheer coldness with which he had done it. The crimson-haired Devil had heard the genuine terror in Raynare's words, and known that Raynare's offer to "do anything" might well have been legitimate. Rias herself, of course, had had to deal with strays before, but she remembered the first time she had had to kill one, and how frightened and hesitant she had been. Issei, by contrast, had been the exact opposite; with barely a moment's hesitation, Issei had ended his helpless opponent's life.

Akeno had felt her breath freeze in her throat as Issei brought the sword down, and it was only after several seconds of watching the blood flow down Raynare's face that she remembered to breathe again. She felt little horror or disgust at what Issei had done; she had seen far more gruesome sights when dealing with strays. Rather, she was consumed by curiosity about Issei's sudden change in demeanor, not to mention Kokabiel's words. The Fallen Angel cadre had referred to something "sick" Raynare had done, and how Issei was welcome to "his revenge".

 _What happened between him and her…?_ The thought was infectious, and she knew she would have to wait to find out, if she ever did.

Koneko, in contrast to her normal quiet and unemotional demeanor, was wearing an expression that made it clear she was on the verge of vomiting. The Gremory Rook was no stranger to violence, but something about what Issei had done hit a twinge in her mind that nauseated her. She could only imagine what was going through her senior's mind to put him in a state where he could slaughter a person begging for their life.

For a moment, Issei held his sword in place, taking in his dead killer's final expression.

Then, he unceremoniously tore his sword free from her skull, bone and blood splattering him as he did so.

Raynare's body, which had been on its knees, slumped forwards and began to stain the grass a cold crimson hue.

* * *

As Issei pulled his sword loose, Kokabiel began to chuckle. After a few seconds, this chortle morphed into full-blown laughter.

"I honestly didn't think you'd have the balls to do that," Kokabiel cackled. "I thought I'd have to run her through myself, but you showed you've got some guts! Rather interesting for a change!" Kokabiel let himself drop to the ground as Issei turned to face him, the cadre not acknowledging the landing with so much as a bend of his knees. "You know, you really ought to join me. I could use someone who's got some ruthlessness to them. I could certainly toughen you up."

Issei promptly bolted towards him, light sword held in one hand, in reply.

Kokabiel's response was something Issei would not have believed possible had it not happened right before his eyes.

As Issei's light sword swung down towards the Fallen Angel's head, Kokabiel raised a palm.

When the sword of light hit it, it was simply stopped. No cuts were made in Kokabiel's hand, and even using his other arm afforded Issei no progress whatsoever.

He had barely two seconds to attempt it before the cadre's free fist lanced out and crashed into Issei's face.

The Jack of Hearts saw stars as the blow hit him, his nose smashed in by the impact and he himself being knocked back several feet. Pain flooded his skull as he was struck by the ten-winged Fallen Angel, then more as he felt himself hit the ground.

"I suppose I shouldn't have been so optimistic," Kokabiel sneered. "I guess those self-righteous bastards in Heaven already have their claws in you. "Cut your wings off rather than fall", is that what they tell you?"

Issei felt rage pour into his mind at those words, and he struggled to push himself to his feet. As he looked down, he could see his own blood leak onto the grass.

 _How the hell can he hit so hard?_

"Issei!" Xenovia cried as she rushed over to him and helped pull him to his feet.

"I'm okay," Issei got out between coughs.

"So then, Kokabiel," Rias snapped. "You want something _interesting_ , right?"

"If you're all thinking of attacking me at once," Kokabiel said dismissively, "I could kick all of your asses at the same time without straining myself." He gave a sadistic grin. "But if you want to waste your time anyway, I'll oblige you."

"Why don't you _prove i_ _t_!" Rias screamed as she folded her arms in front of her. An instant later, the energy she had used on the Cerberus flew towards Kokabiel. Akeno quickly followed suit with a crackling thunderbolt.

Kokabiel's response was to simply put up his palm once more.

Both attacks struck his hand, but they, like Issei's sword, inflicted no damage whatsoever. Instead, they simply dissipated, to the shock of both girls.

 **"** **Partner!"**

Issei was wrenched back to reality at those words, and he reactivated the Boosted Gear. An instant later…

 **"BOOST!"**

Xenovia and Kiba, meanwhile, had taken the opportunity to sneak to Kokabiel's sides, without realizing that this would not help one iota.

This was made abundantly clear to them when they attempted to strike both sides of the Fallen Angel at once; their target simply formed a sword in each hand and easily stopped both of their blades, before tossing them backwards with barely an effort.

Koneko had attempted to use the chaos to get a strike in on Kokabiel's head. She, however, did not anticipate him blocking her, the Rook of Rias Gremory, with a single finger and then literally flicking her away; the strike of his finger sent her flying several feet through the air.

 **"** **BOOST!"**

Issei began to form small spears, similar to the ones he had impaled the first Cerberus with, and tossed about a dozen of them at Kokabiel at once.

Kokabiel communicated the effectiveness of this maneuver letting the spears strike him; to Issei's utter dismay, the thin spears did not even pierce the cadre's skin.

"Going to have to try harder!" Kokabiel said, his voice a cold singsong.

"Sword Birth!"

Kokabiel looked up to find more than a dozen swords racing towards him, about a meter off the ground and perpendicular to it; the cadre snorted and simply folded his ten wings around him, allowing the swords to strike his wings and disintegrate harmlessly.

 **"** **BOOST!"**

"He counters everything we throw at him..." Xenovia muttered as Kokabiel countered her with ease a second time. "So this is a leader-class Fallen Angel's power..."

For perhaps the first time in her years as an exorcist, the blue-haired young woman had no idea what to do. They had no options, no escape from the conflict, and no way of gaining either. Kokabiel would eventually grow bored and kill them all if they stayed; they would die in the town's destruction if they fled.

Unbeknownst to her, all of Kokabiel's opponents had the same emotion coursing through their veins.

 **"** **BOOST!"**

Issei, perhaps, felt the helplessness most strongly. He had not just his life, but his own honor riding on the result of the battle. The Jack of Hearts had made a promise to Griselda that he would protect Xenovia and Irina, and he knew he had already failed at the latter.

 _I've gotta stop this fucker… I've gotta keep Xenovia safe… but_ _ **how**_ _?!_

 **"BOOST!"**

In a surge of frustration, Issei ignored agony and leaped towards Kokabiel, attempting to strike his face with his bare fists.

Kokabiel, as one might expect at this point, easily caught his fist in a palm. Issei attempted to strike with his other fist, and the cadre blocked that as well.

In desperation, Issei attempted to slam his head into Kokabiel's, despite the injuries he had already suffered. And to his surprise, Kokabiel let the strike go through, sending fresh agony through Issei's skull.

It took only a moment for Issei to realize that his headbutt might as well have been against a brick wall for all the difference it made.

Kokabiel then, even as he deflected more sword and magic strikes, struck Issei in the chest with a knee, sending Issei flying back and a horrible crunching sensation through his torso.

The Fallen Angel cadre folded his arms and let out a sarcastic sigh. "I don't get you, Angel. Why fight so hard for a pack of Devils and an exorcist you aren't even allowed to be truthful with?"

At those words, everyone froze, and Issei felt his blood run cold.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he heard a voice cry through the blood pounding through his ears. It took a moment to realize it was Xenovia yelling.

"Whoops," Kokabiel said sarcastically, turning his head slightly to the side. "Sorry, that just slipped right out."

"Shut up..." Issei muttered. He, unlike everyone else, knew _exactly_ what bit of information Kokabiel was dancing close to and was desperate to make sure it didn't escape.

"Kokabiel!" Xenovia screamed. "What are you trying to hide?!"

To everyone's surprise, Kokabiel covered his face with a palm and began to laugh a cold, mocking, bone-chilling laugh.

"I guess I really am trying to start a war!" Kokabiel cackled. "Oh, who am I kidding? There's no point in hiding it any more. I suppose I might as well just tell you the brutal truth."

" _Shut up!_ " Issei tried to shout, but the pain in his chest was so severe that it was little more than a loud groan.

Ignoring him, the Fallen Angel cadre's hand pulled away from his face, and his eyes turned and focused directly into the blue-haired exorcist's.

"In the previous three-way war, God was actually killed along with the Four Great Devil Kings!"

* * *

Eyes flew wide. Mouths dropped open. A large sword hit the ground, and Xenovia fell to her knees.

"No… it can't be..." she stammered helplessly, horrified beyond reason as Kokabiel's words played over and over within her mind. "God's dead…? Then… all of our prayers… It has to be lies… no..."

"No!" Rias shouted. "You're lying! I've never heard anything about that!"

Kokabiel shrugged, a cruel and satisfied smirk on his face. "Oh, if you won't take _my_ word for it..." He gestured to Issei. "Why not ask your resident Angel?"

All eyes flew to the Jack of Hearts as he struggled just to get to his knees, blood flowing freely from his mouth and nose.

"Issei..." Xenovia said, barely able to string a coherent sentence together. "Issei… it's not… it can't be… he's lying..."

"Isn't he?" Rias demanded, her voice far clearer.

For a moment, even as the gauntlet on his left arm shouted an incantation again, Issei said nothing.

Then, almost inaudibly, the brunette responded.

"No… it's all true..."

* * *

Rias and her peerage were merely shocked by Issei's words, none knowing how to respond.

Xenovia, meanwhile, felt the world fell apart around her, her entire worldview shattered with one sentence.

"You've…" Xenovia spluttered. "You've been… lying to us..." Tears ran freely from her face, her eyes as vacant as Issei's had been. "I… what have… our prayers aren't heard… it's all for nothing…?"

Kokabiel gave a cold chuckle at that. "Well, no. Michael's taken the system over. So long as _that_ works, prayer and exorcisms will continue to a certain extent. I can assure you that _someone's_ been listening. Of course, the Three Factions had to seal away that little detail, just to make sure the God-fearing humans kept on fearing."

 **"** **BOOST!"**

Eyes flew to Kokabiel as he continued ranting, ignoring the chant from the Boosted Gear. "Now try to keep in mind that I don't give a _shit_ about any of that! Just that when God and the Devil Kings died, they decided to _stop the war_! Why would they do that and keep me from crushing my enemies just when it was getting fun?! Even that bastard Azazel said we'd never have another war! What the _fuck_?!"

 **"BOOST!"**

As soon as he'd managed to push himself up to his feet, Issei formed one final sword of light, an insane idea running through his head. Then, with anger, frustration and desperation overruling even the immense pain he was in, Issei summoned a ball of flame in his hand. As he did so, Issei felt the utterly horrible sensation of his magical reserves running completely dry.

He, however, refused to allow this to cause him any uncertainty, instead focusing all of his will, all of his anger, on the fireball in his hand.

 _You will obey me._

The flames danced, as though uncertain of what to do.

 _You will_ _ **obey**_ _me._

The flames began to lean this way and that, towards his arm and towards Kokabiel, towards the Devils and towards the exorcist.

 _ **You will obey me.**_

The flames held almost perfectly still.

 _ **Obey.**_

For a single heartbeat, the flames did not move.

Then, they jumped from his hand – but not to his arm.

The blaze crawled up the blade of his sword of light.

* * *

Kokabiel had been so busy ranting that he didn't notice Issei's movement, nor his summoning of a sword or flames.

What turned his head was yet another shouting of **"BOOST!"**

The Fallen Angel cadre took in the sight of Issei's inflamed sword with a slight interest, before grinning. "You're a glutton for punishment, boy."

It was then that Kokabiel noticed something that Issei himself had not.

"Hmm? Seems you've crossed a power threshold."

Issei comprehended none of Kokabiel's meaning, and the short burst of pain that raced through his back was lost amid the suffering his body was already undergoing. Instead, he forced himself, through torturous agony, to run towards Kokabiel, sword poised to strike point-first.

The cadre shrugged and closed his wings once more, and Issei's sword stabbed them a heartbeat later.

"Don't know what you think you're going to accomplish with that, little boy."

Issei, however, was not listening as he watched the flames dance on his blade. His vision swimming, he had only one thought on his mind.

 _Come on… come on…_

For several seconds, Issei watched helplessly, the ability to speed along the process completely out of his reach.

Then, right of the corner of his eye, he saw his hopes become a reality.

A single feather had caught fire, independent of the blade.

"If you're done, boy, I can just ki-"

 **"** **TRANSFER!"**

The tiny, insignificant flame roared to a small inferno, Kokabiel letting out an uncharacteristic scream at the sudden pain lancing through his wings.

The flames burned for but a few seconds before extinguishing and Kokabiel shoved Issei back, the brunette only barely able to stay on his feet.

But when Kokabiel attempted to flap his wings, he was treated to the horrific sight of three of them disintegrating into ash.

Issei allowed himself a small grin, before he locked eyes with Kokabiel.

Before, there had been sneering contempt and condescension.

Now, there was fury unlike anything Issei had seen within them, and Kokabiel's next words were not the boastful, arrogant tone he had used before.

Now, they were a chilling, cold calm as he formed his own sword of light.

"Tell me, boy. Would you prefer I tear your chest or throat open first?"

* * *

Issei was caught in a whirlwind of agonizing pain as Kokabiel illustrated very clearly just how much power he had been holding back. Everywhere the teen's head turned, there was the cadre, slicing his skin in another way or delivering another blow with his fists or legs.

The wounds were not deep, but they were excruciatingly painful, for that was the Fallen Angel's only goal: To torture him. To make him suffer for burning the cadre's wings.

Blood seeped from dozens of wounds, and several times Issei felt the awful sensation of bones cracking.

The Devils and Xenovia tried to come to his aid, but they had been knocked back the moment they drew near. Instead, all they could do was listen to Issei scream in pain as Kokabiel inflicted his vengeance upon the poor boy.

* * *

Issei had no idea how long it lasted. All he knew is that he became vaguely aware that he was lying flat on his back, Kokabiel standing over him with a massive sword, poised to end his life even as blackness tugged at the edges of the teen's vision.

"Don't worry," Kokabiel sneered. "I'll be sure to personally deliver the news of your death and what's left of you to your King."

Slowly, he began to lower the sword, Issei refusing to shut his eyes despite his terror at the prospect of dying once more.

 _Xenovia… Griselda… I'm sorry… I failed you…_

Just before his vision went black, however, he became conscious of something.

What was that light in the sky?

* * *

 _And cut._


	30. End of the Storm

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Sona's entire peerage was staring, shocked, at the bright white light falling to earth, blasting effortlessly through their barrier on its way; they only had enough time to put up personal barriers before the concussive force of the barrier's destruction hit them.

Once it had dissipated, all but two were silent, swallowed by confusion.

"What _was_ that?" Saji asked his King.

"I… I have no idea..." Sona replied.

* * *

Rias' peerage and Xenovia, by contrast, had not even noticed; they were too transfixed by horror at what Kokabiel was about to do to the helpless and defeated Issei.

Kokabiel was blinded by anger, hatred causing tunnel vision to overtake his focus.

If the cadre was not, he might have noticed the light.

* * *

One instant, Kokabiel was about to pierce Issei's skull the way the brunette had done to Raynare.

The next, he was ripped away from Issei's limp body.

Gasps went up from all at Kokabiel was given a brutal strike to the face.

"Sorry, but I can't have you doing that."

At those words, eyes jumped to their source.

Floating in midair was an individual in some sort of white armor. Set within the armor were azure gems, contrasting with the ivory of the armor's skin, while a pair of wings seemingly formed from blue energy extended from their back.

Kokabiel, meanwhile, had recovered from the blow and tried to return the strike. His assailant, however proved the quicker by far, darting around his back and grabbing three more of Kokabiel's wings.

An instant later, they were torn loose, sending a shriek of agony up from Kokabiel.

"Someone who's fallen lower than the earth itself hardly has need for wings."

"You bastard!" Kokabiel spluttered as flew high above the school and placed his hands over his head.

Just a moment or so afterwords, a spear of light began to form between them. At first, it was about the size of the one Issei had killed the Cerberus with.

A moment later, it was the size of a building.

Then it grew to be larger than the entire sports field.

Then it grew further, to be larger than the entire campus.

The Devils and Xenovia all gaped at the spear, which continued to increase in size until it was clear it would destroy the entire town with its impact.

The figure in white, by contrast, merely raised his hand. As he did so, another unfamiliar voice spoke. It was incredibly deep, much the same as Ddraig's, but without the emotion-ridden tones of the Red Dragon's voice.

 **"** **Divide."**

The spear suddenly halved in size as Kokabiel's face twisted into a hateful glare.

 **"** **Divide."**

It shrank again, to only about the size of the gymnasium.

 **"** **Divide."**

The spear's size was reduced even further, to about its original dimensions.

 **"** **Divide."**

The spear diminished beyond even that, to around the size of one of Issei's.

 **"Divide."**

The spear vanished.

"What have you done?!" Kokabiel screamed at this person.

"Oh, don't you know?" the armored individual replied, his tone casual. "His name is Albion. One of the powers of my Sacred Gear is Divine Dividing – every ten seconds, it cuts in half the power of whatever it's touched and sustains _me_ with that power instead."

It was at those words that Rias' brain snapped back to reality, and she realized just where she had heard the name "Albion".

"The White Dragon Emperor? The rival of the Red?!"

The unknown attacker spared a slight glance at her, before answering with a single word. "Indeed."

The figure looked back to Kokabiel. "Better hurry or you won't even be able to defeat a human."

Kokabiel, whose power had just been vastly reduced, was too busy panting to reply.

"Are you still bored?" the White Dragon Emperor said, his tone mocking. "Here, let me make this more interesting for you."

He shot towards the cadre, impacting the latter's chest with the force of a semi truck and causing Kokabiel to spit up blood.

"I've been told you're getting out of hand. Azazel asked me to bring you back even if it took all my power."

With that, he grabbed Kokabiel and rocketed upwards, before reversing his trajectory and smashing into the ground with a thunderous crash.

All Kokabiel managed to say was a curse, directed towards Azazel.

* * *

The instant the impact was made, the seal that had been placed on the school to destroy it began to float upwards from the ground. It crawled up the walls of the school buildings, hovering high in the air above the peak of Kuoh Academy.

Then, it simply vanished.

Sona and her peerage, no longer under the strain of holding up the barrier, could only stare, dumbfounded.

"The waves from the magic square are disappearing..." Tsubaki said.

"Then..." Sona said, "...Rias must have won… but… what was that light?"

* * *

Within the newest addition to Kuoh Academy's recently-begun collection of craters, the White Dragon Emperor stood, holding the now-unconscious Kokabiel like a sack of potatoes beneath his arm.

"Hmm… I need to ask a few things of our exile, as well..."

When he jumped from the pit and approached her body, however, he immediately saw the state of it, sighing.

"Well, it seems I'm too late there. Unfortunate, though no major loss."

The White Dragon Emperor turned to leave, readjusting his prisoner.

 **"So, we meet again, White One."**

The armored figure stopped at those words, turning towards their source. Only then did he notice the unconscious, broken figure lying on the ground. Only then did he notice what he had wondered about for more than a month.

 **"** **You are still alive, Red One?"** Albion demanded in return.

 **"** **I've been wondering when this would happen."** Ddraig said.

 **"** **As have I. We are still fated to fight. It is inevitable."** Albion's words were terse and cold. **"** **Let's meet again soon, Ddraig."**

A sigh escaped the gauntlet. **"Conflict between our hosts is unavoidable, it seems."**

 **"** **What's with that tone?"** Albion demanded sarcastically. **"You sound almost** _ **reluctant**_ **."**

Ddraig did not answer.

The figure in armor, meanwhile, took a few steps over to Issei's badly beaten body, taking in the extent of his injuries in a stoic manner.

"So," came the armor wielder's voice, "this is the Angel who is to be my rival, is it?" He looked up at Rias. "He needs serious medical attention, though I think you know that already."

Then, without ceremony, the White Dragon Emperor vanished into the sky.

* * *

Sona and her peerage came flying onto the sports field a few moments after the figure left. And almost immediately, they saw Issei's battered and broken body.

"What happened?" Sona demanded of Rias as Tsubaki looked him over.

"He… he tried to take Kokabiel head-on..." Rias said, shame flooding through her at even feeling pain from her comparatively minor injuries. Cuts and bruises were universal among those who had fought, but no one's injuries came close to Issei's brutalized state.

"Tsubaki," Sona snapped at her Queen. "Can we save him?"

To the relief of all present, the black-haired Vice President nodded. "Yes. Or at least, I can keep his condition stable until Sirzechs arrives. But with the extent of his injuries, moving him isn't an option; it'll just hurt him even more."

Rias nodded before turning to her peerage and Xenovia. "All of you, we need to start the repair work to the school."

Her peerage nodded and began to go to work, but Xenovia did not.

"I can't leave Issei!" she cried. "It would be a sin for me to-"

Rias cut her off before she got any further. "No, Xenovia. There's nothing either of us can do for him, and being human, you can't help fix the damage. We'll have to depend on Sona and her peerage to keep Issei breathing while my peerage helps fix this place. There's nothing left here for you. Please, go. You've earned the right to a rest."

Xenovia opened her mouth to argue, but then the crimson-haired Devil's words began to seep through and she realized the truth of them.

Tears in her eyes, she nodded, before she began to walk away, hating herself for not being able to aid Issei. The one who had aided them, treated them like old friends, saved Irina's life and suffered horribly at the hands of her target simply to keep the cadre away from anyone else.

Before she could completely leave, however, she heard Kiba's voice call after her.

"Xenovia! Wait!"

The blue-haired exorcist turned to find Kiba running towards her, something in his arms.

When he drew near, her teary eyes widened as she realized what they were.

"The Excalibur's cores?"

The Gremory Knight nodded. "Yeah. You needed these to finish your mission, right?"

"Yes," the exorcist replied as she took the offered metal shards, not a hint of happiness or joy in her voice. Looking them over, she held them back towards Kiba.

"Shouldn't these have hurt you?"

Kiba shrugged sadly. "Sure, it hurts, but I can't complain. Not after what Issei's been through tonight..."

For a moment, both were silent.

"Which one?"

Kiba blinked. "What?"

"Which one do you want?" Xenovia asked, her voice low and crushed. "You wanted to destroy one, right? Which one do you want to destroy?"

Kiba sighed before he answered. "Xenovia, I'm never going to like Excalibur. I'll admit that. But… I realize now that my anger was misplaced. It's not Excalibur's fault. Excalibur is just a bunch of swords. Valper was the one behind it all, and he's dead now." He gently pushed Xenovia's arm so they hugged the cores tighter. "Take those back to the church. Finish your mission. I say that as your friend, not your enemy."

Xenovia offered a quiet thanks as she walked away and off the sports field.

* * *

Even as the blue-haired reached Issei's home, she maintained some of her composure. Even as she called headquarters to report what had happened, she did not crack.

What cracked the facade was the coldness of the tone that greeted her when she mentioned what Kokabiel had said. It was the same tone that told her, in no uncertain terms, that she was never welcome in the church again.

Helpless to do anything as what remained of her world collapsed, Xenovia broke down and began to sob in the darkness.

* * *

 _And cut._


	31. A Welcome Intrusion

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

There were a great many things that Deethelm Waldseemüller did not like. He might have been an Angel, but that did not mean his love for people and the world was even close to universal.

Chief among things he disliked were being dragged out of bed just after falling asleep to go deal with Gabriel's Jack.

It had all started when he was rudely awoken from the one time he had been able to get to bed early within the last week. For a moment, he did not comprehend the loud rattling that was blasting through his ears.

Then, he threw the covers off of himself and stormed towards the door. Throwing it open, he was confronted by one of his fellow Saints.

"Ridley, what do you want? I'm trying to sleep."

Ridley Ashworth, Raphael's Eight, responded with a message that might as well have been a taser, for it roused and angered Deethelm in equal measure. "Raphael needs you to go handle a… _situation_ regarding Lady Gabriel's Jack. According to him, the kid bolted in with an injured exorcist, said something about a Fallen Angel and then ran off before our King could get anything else out of him. He's in a place called Kuoh. You know where that is?"

The Ace of Clubs gave an aggravated sigh. "That _moron_. No, I don't have a clue. Guess I'll have to check the records, because I'm betting I won't get anything out of that exorcist."

"You'd bet right," Ridley said, shrugging. "Well, have fun with that. I'll be in bed, and don't knock on my door if you don't want a whack in the face."

"Enjoy sleeping while I clean up that idiot's mess..." Deethelm seethed.

* * *

Deethelm found Gabriel's Jack to be something of an enigma, despite the praises sung by most.

The Ace of Clubs could admit that Issei was quite the friendly teenager much of the time. The brunette had proven, according to both the Queen of Hearts and Michael's Joker, to be an extremely rapid learner. Griselda had at several points sung praise to his swordsmanship, and even the Ace of Clubs was surprised to find that Issei was already trying to learn to use fire. From what Deethelm knew, most Brave Saints took at least a couple of months to get a good grasp of light magic, while Issei had figured it out in less than one.

Yet the Ace also had a few major issues with the Jack of Hearts.

Deethelm found the brown-haired teen to be quite emotional, letting his feelings rule his thoughts and decisions, rather than tempering them and maintaining a clear mind. The raid on the church was a good example; Deethelm may not have known where Kuoh _was_ , exactly, but he had heard through the grapevine that there were Devils controlling that area, and that the Seraphs had had to go through two Devil Kings to get him home.

It was not that the Ace of Clubs begrudged Issei for wanting to return home; he fully understood that Issei was not a member of the church in his past and did not think less of him for it.

It was his apparent disregard for the fragility of the peace that rubbed Deethelm the wrong way. Issei had to know better than almost anyone how tense things were between the Three Factions, and yet the Jack had stormed into a church with two of Heaven's strongest Saints and raised hell.

Perhaps what was more frustrating to Deethelm was the fact that Griselda and Dulio, two people whom he respected very much, had indulged him in this action. Even more directly, neither had given much argument, according to his King. Deethelm did, of course, sympathize with Issei's cause of rescuing an innocent. What he did not sympathize with was Issei's blatantly reckless disregard for who his actions might cause harm to; reigniting the war would kill far more innocents than letting one die would, and Gabriel's Jack simply did not seem to grasp that sometimes, one had to take the lesser of two evils.

Even _more_ aggravating was how luck seemed to directly favor Issei Hyoudou in these regards; apparently, the Devils in the town had basically shrugged in reply, and he even escaped any punishment more severe than a verbal scolding. Somehow, the Ace doubted that any other Saint would have gotten off so lightly.

And now the Jack had apparently screwed things up once more through his sheer impulsiveness. And once more, it fell to the other Saints to help him out.

As the Ace threw his vestments on, he gave an irritated sigh.

* * *

The records in Fifth Heaven turned up Kuoh, alright, but all they had were the coordinates of an old church. Apparently, Issei had never felt the need to register his town's location with any more specificity than that.

Deethelm was growing more irritated by the second as he assumed the form of the cross, reasoning that he would have to make do with the coordinates he had and just hope he could track Issei down.

When he found him, the Ace swore he was going to slap Gabriel's Jack hard enough to knock his teeth loose.

* * *

It wasn't exactly difficult for Deethelm to figure out where Issei had gone. As soon as he arrived outside the church in the town of Kuoh, he could perceive an enormous magical barrier over a large area – invisible to normal humans, but not to an Angel. There was just one small problem.

That barrier was several kilometers away.

Cursing under his breath, the Ace spread his eight wings and flew towards the barrier, hoping he would reach it in time.

He was perhaps a kilometer off when he saw the blue-white light falling from the sky, smashing right through the barrier on its way. After landing on a rooftop, Deethelm watched as an enormous spear of light began to form. To his shock, it quickly grew to titanic size, and Deethelm knew that it had to be the Fallen Angel cadre that Ridley had mentioned.

Then, for no reason Deethelm could see, it began to shrink just as quickly, until it had vanished completely.

A moment later, the light that had crashed down shot back upward, before racing back to the earth.

A minute after, it raced off into the sky.

As Deethelm flew the last kilometer, he did not notice the girl walking several hundred meters below, carrying scraps of metal of some description.

* * *

When he arrived outside where the barrier had been, Deethelm was surprised to find that it was a school.

Leaping the gate with ease, Deethelm almost immediately felt the presence of more than a dozen Devils. He was not surprised, of course; the Ace had heard about the Excalibur theft, and when he had heard that Issei had been delegated to help deal with it, Deethelm had just hoped that he wouldn't make a mess of things.

As he drew near the locations of the Devil's auras, he felt his heart sink at the numerous holes in the ground.

"Halt!"

Deethelm's head snapped up to see a crimson-haired young woman glaring at him. Soon enough, he made out quite a few other figures, and felt their auras.

These were the Devils, all right.

"Identify yourself!" the young Devil demanded.

"Deethelm Waldseemüller," the Ace said. "One of Heaven's Brave Saints." He put his hand up. "I'm not here for a fight. I came to provide backup to the Jack of Hearts, though by the looks of this place, I missed the party. Any idea where he is?"

"Where were you earlier?" a blonde Devil snapped. "We needed all the help we could get over here!"

Deethelm's eye twitched. "I," he said, forcing irritability out of his tone, "was asleep until about twenty minutes ago. I got ripped out of bed by my King's orders. Said that Issei had brought an exorcist to Heaven for medical treatment, said something about a Fallen Angel, then left before Raphael could get any more information out of him. I've been spending those last twenty minutes trying to track Issei down, since he didn't leave the information in Fifth Heaven."

"Why you, specifically?" came the crimson-haired Devil again.

Deethelm shrugged. "I'm an Ace – my card value, that is. If I need to explain why that's important, I'm not going to waste my breath. Now, like I said, do you know where Issei is?"

Another Devil, this one with short-cut bobbed hair, spoke up, her voice calm and even. "He's here." She pointed behind her. "Come here and see for yourself."

Deethelm stalked over towards the pointed finger, past several Devils, intent on giving Issei a piece of his mind for getting himself into trouble again.

As soon as he caught sight of Issei, however, any thoughts of chewing the Jack out fled the Ace's thoughts.

Someone, and Deethelm had a good idea of who, had beaten Issei to a bruised, battered and bloody pulp. The unconscious teen's face was a wreck, his nose and right cheek both completely smashed in, while his forehead was black and blue. The flesh on his arms was shredded, likely having stained the shirt he had been wearing.

That shirt had been removed, exposing a torso that was warped and bent at an unnatural set of angles. One of his leg bones had snapped, piercing through the skin and leaking blood across the remaining skin.

What wasn't broken was bruised, and what wasn't bruised was covered in shallow, painful-looking slashes.

Only the shallow rise and fall of his chest assured Deethelm that Issei still clung to the mortal coil.

After looking Issei over, horrified, for a few seconds, the Ace of Clubs looked up at the Devils.

"What are this place's coordinates?"

After acquiring the information, Deethelm nodded grimly.

"I'll be back in a minute."

* * *

Deethelm ascended to Zebel immediately, not even bothering to stop in First Heaven.

Upon his arrival, he bowed instantly upon spotting one of the Seraphs.

"Ah, the Ace of Clubs," Sandalphon said. "You require something?"

"Yes, Lord Sandalphon," Deethelm replied. "Do you know where Lord Raphael might be? I desperately require his help. One of the Brave Saints has been severely injured, and I have no skill whatsoever with healing magic."

"From what I understand," Sandalphon said, "he should be in Fifth Heaven. Something to do with an injured exorcist?"

"Thank you, sir."

* * *

Going down a level, Deethelm ran through the gates and into the medical facilities.

Almost immediately, he was graced by his King's presence.

Not bothering to bow, Deethelm instead wasted no time explaining the situation. "Raphael, I've found Issei. He's hurt, badly, and I can't risk moving him, but he needs help. _Real_ help."

Raphael nodded, taking a deep breath. "You have the coordinates we need?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then point the way."

* * *

The Devils had just gotten back to work, wondering what the Ace had gone to do, when they suddenly saw two crosses form a short distance apart, not far from Issei.

From one formed Deethelm.

From the other formed a fairly tall man, with long, thick blonde hair, whose aura was of a terrifying capacity.

Almost immediately, every Devil drew a weapon or prepared their respective magical powers for the fight of their lives.

To their surprise, however, the man simply raised a hand before speaking in a calm, almost relaxing voice. "I am Raphael, one of the Four Great Seraphim of Heaven. Fear not, for I mean no trespass. I come only to aid an injured Saint, nothing more."

With that Raphael walked over to Issei's body, ignoring the hostile glares of the abundant Devils, and raised a palm.

From it sprung a plume of water, which quickly split and assumed the forms of several serpents. Instinctively sensing his will, the liquid snakes extended down from his open hand, slithering through the air towards Issei Hyoudou's battered body.

After each finding a place on his body that was not broken, all six sank watery fangs into his body.

"What are you doing?!" shrieked one Devil, one with exceptionally long black hair. "We're trying to save his life, not kill him!"

"Be at ease," Raphael said calmly. "This is a magic known as the Venom's Restoration – these snakes mean only to heal the wounded."

Indeed, to the absolute shock of every Devil present, Issei's body began to mend itself before their very eyes. Over the course of several minutes, they watched as bones snapped back into place, cuts mended, bruises cleared and Issei's body slowly became the picture of health – save his unconsciousness, of course.

When they had finished, the snakes retreated to Raphael's palm. "That should about handle things." He looked over to the crimson-haired Devil. "I can provide medical treatment to any who might need it, if you wish."

"That would be appreciated," the young woman said. "Both my Knight and Rook have been injured. That magic won't injure them in any way, will it?"

Raphael shook his head as he formed new snakes in his palm. "Step forward, any who might wish to partake."

A blonde Devil and a much shorter silver-haired one looked at one another before nervously and shakily walked towards the Seraph, unsure if this was a wise decision at all.

The snakes sensed the Seraph's will once more and instantly extended once more, racing towards the Knight and Rook.

"Place your arms out, if you would, and roll your sleeves up."

Somewhat reluctantly, the two obeyed.

It was all the two could do to not wince as they held their arms in front of them, snakes constructed from water circling them; one flicked its tongue towards the Knight, whose shoulder was sprained, while the other went towards the Rook, whose cheek had been broken by Kokabiel's flick.

Ever so slowly, the snake's mouths opened wide, wider than any living, flesh-and-blood snake could ever hope to. Liquid fangs slid into place.

Then, they sank, with a wince, into the two Devil's arms.

"Aren't serpents a symbol of sin?" asked the Devil who had screamed at Raphael prior.

"That Eve was tempted by one in the Garden of Eden is no reason to condemn all snakes," Raphael replied sagely. "This is simply a practical form for this magic to take; it need not be a snake if I do not desire it to be."

After just a few seconds, the Rook's cheekbone slid back into its proper position, and the bruising around it began to clear.

The Knight's arm and shoulder, meanwhile, began to repair themselves, tendons resetting to their correct positions as flesh reconstructed itself.

After less than thirty seconds, it was as though they had never been injured at all.

* * *

All were quiet, the Devils awed by the healing power of Heaven's Seraph, while Deethelm awaited the latter's orders.

Raphael, after a few seconds, broke the silence. "Do any of you know where Issei Hyoudou's home is?"

The Knight nodded. "I do. I was there a couple of times while we planned out a hunting strategy."

Raphael nodded in return. "Excellent. I'd ask that you return him home, given that the Jack of Hearts will likely be out cold for several hours yet. My Ace will accompany you there to obtain his home's coordinates and prevent future mishaps."

The Knight nodded, before walking over to Issei, tenderly picking him off the ground, and indicating Deethelm to follow him.

A few moments later, they had vanished from the sports field.

"Lord Raphael," said the bobbed-cut Devil, "we thank you for your aid..."

The Seraph raised a hand. "Think nothing of it. I am a doctor first and foremost. Tending to the wounded is my aim, not reigniting war."

The crimson-haired one nodded. "I think I can speak for us both when I say that any and all intrusions by Angels tonight are completely forgiven."

Raphael nodded. "Thank you, young lady. If there is nothing else, I must return to Heaven."

Heads shook all around, and Raphael proceeded to vanish into a cross.

With more hands freed, the repair work to the school went much more quickly, and the damage was fixed within two hours.

* * *

When Deethelm and Kiba arrived at the home of Issei Hyoudou, they did not enter the front door. There was no reason to; if they were to go through the front entrance, they would certainly have to confront Issei's parents and explain to them what had happened, and neither had a lie ready.

Instead, they simply flew upwards, through the window Issei had left open when he had leaped down to confront Kokabiel.

Neither stayed very long, only long enough to leave Issei on his bed and Deethelm to obtain the coordinates.

Neither heard the sobbing coming from a few rooms over.

If they had, quite a bit of a young woman's heartache might have been averted.

* * *

 _And cut. And so we meet the first OC Saint. If you're wondering, Ridley is meant to be British. And no, you don't get to complain about this, given the fact that the names of the Brave Saints revealed thus far would imply they're from all over the place._


	32. Helplessness

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"My Jack has been injured and I'm only hearing about it _half an hour later_?" Gabriel snapped to Raphael.

Both stood in Zebel, Gabriel glaring furiously at her brother, as she took the news with much more grace than Raphael had expected.

"Gabriel, I've been busy with making sure he didn't bleed to death and tending to the injured exorcist with your Nine's help besides. Besides, with the amount of healing venom I injected him with, he should be fine."

"And if he isn't?" Gabriel demanded. "What then, hmm?"

"When has my venom ever failed?" Raphael asked.

"There's a first time for everything."

Raphael sighed. "Then if it comes to that, I will take full responsibility for his death."

Gabriel took a slow, deep breath, trying to make her next words come out very calmly. "If it comes to that, Raphael… that will be the _least_ you can do."

With that, the sole female Seraph turned and walked away, towards her own chambers.

Raphael exhaled, surprised he still had ears after his discussion with the Seraph notorious for being protective of her Saints.

* * *

For the second time in just a few months, Issei was surprised to find his eyes opening and his body still functioning.

As the blurry haze of unconsciousness cleared, he felt one key difference from when he had awoken in Heaven: He did not feel well. He did not feel well in the slightest.

He stumbled out of bed, banging into walls and nearly tripping over something on the floor. He raced as fast as he could in his dizzy state to the bathroom, barely making it to the sink in time. Seconds later, Issei began vomiting out everything left in his stomach, as though he had consumed something poisonous and was his body was desperately trying to purge itself of the contaminant.

And so he stood in front of the sink, puking out slop and liquid as his throat, mouth and lips were sprayed in a foul flavor.

Even once his stomach had nothing more contained within it, the brunette continued to stand there, knees weak, dry-heaving as the waves of nausea continued to pulse through him.

It took more than a minute of standing there before Issei realized that the nausea was gone and that he was no longer in danger of repainting the walls a disgusting color. Only then did he truly, consciously take in his surroundings.

 _I'm home… where's my shirt? I never..._

Then, the memories of what had happened crashed through his mind like a tsunami laying waste to a beach.

He remembered Kokabiel's tossing Irina to him. Taking her to Heaven. Going back to the school. Fighting and killing two Cerberus. The fusing and subsequent re-destruction of the Excalibur.

His killing of Raynare.

Issei began to shake his head, forcibly burying the memory so deep that he was sure nothing would be able to break it loose again.

Then, Kokabiel had attacked them himself. Issei remembered clearly how the cadre had easily stopped every single one of their strikes, no matter what they had attacked him with.

That the Fallen Angel had revealed the death of God.

That was when things became a blur of pain and torment, without any clarity behind it. All Issei could recall after that was…

 _What the hell was that light?_

Issei looked down, his eyes scanning his sore body as his tongue ran across his teeth.

Nothing on his body seemed to be out of place, but Issei clearly remembered having what were probably broken bones and slashed flesh all over his body even _before_ that light in the sky. And how he had gotten home? He knew he'd never have made it back, whether by wing or foot, in the condition he'd been in.

What the hell had happened?

* * *

After Issei took note of the time being around five in the morning, he decided that there was no real point in going back to bed.

Instead, he drew himself a hot shower and took some time examining his own body, looking for any trace of injury.

There was none, and Issei was left completely confused.

* * *

Issei had dried off and dressed, and was organizing his school items when the phone on his desk began to chirp. Blinking, the brunette reached for it.

"Hello?"

"Issei?" came the voice of Sona Sitri. "You're alright? Thank goodness... I've been calling every hour..."

"Yeah, I guess I'm fine… minus hurting all over," Issei said, wincing slightly. "What happened? Did we win?"

"More or less," Sona said. "Apparently, the White Dragon Emperor came and attacked Kokabiel and made pretty short work of him."

Those words sent a shock wave through Issei Hyoudou.

"Did… did you just say "White Dragon Emperor"?"

"Yes," Sona replied gravely. "Your rival, Issei."

"All right," Issei said, trying to remain calm even as terrified thoughts flooded through his mind.

 _The White Dragon Emperor, and he's strong enough to take Kokabiel down?_

Some words that Griselda had tried so hard to get him to stop using were racing through his mind.

"So," Issei continued, quickly changing the subject, "how did I get back here? And how am I not injured anymore?"

"You're not going to believe this," Sona said, "but one of your fellow Saints showed up just after the White Dragon took off. Apparently you haven't bothered to register your home in Heaven, Issei."

The brunette gulped. It was one of those many little "should probably do that, but I'll keep finding reasons to not bother" situations that everyone finds themselves in throughout life. "Err… no, I haven't."

"Well," Sona said, "as I was saying, a Saint by the name of Deethelm arrived, took one look at you and went back to Heaven. He returned a couple of minutes later with Lord Raphael, who healed you in a matter of minutes."

Issei's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me?" he hissed. "He did something _that_ reckless, to intrude on Devil's terr-"

"Issei," Sona cut him off, "the situation is fine. Rias and I immediately forgave the trespass. It helps that Raphael took care of Kiba and Koneko's injuries, too. After that, he had Kiba bring you home. Oh, and Deethelm got the coordinates of your house while he was at it, from what Raphael said."

"Okay, then..."

"So, Issei, you're the Red Dragon Emperor, are you?" Sona asked nonchalantly, jumping topics again and catching Issei off-guard.

For a few seconds, Issei said nothing. When he did, his response was much more careful and deliberate than Sona had expected.

"No, I'm not. I'm just the Jack of Hearts. I'm an Angel, not a dragon. _Ddraig_ is the Red Dragon Emperor. Just because he lives in my arm doesn't make make him me."

He could practically hear Sona shrug at that. "If you insist. Quite the shame, really, that Heaven scooped you up. The Underworld would've been glad to have you."

Issei snorted. "Well, it's not happening. Not now, not ever."

"So hostile..." Sona said, her voice amused.

"No, I just don't ever plan on falling."

"If you insist," Sona said. "Anyway, there's a small matter I need to discuss with you."

Issei's eyes narrowed. "And what's that, exactly?" He was careful to keep his voice neutral, something which he was quite glad to have done when he heard Sona's next words.

"Rias and I talked after you were taken care of, and we both agreed that you should stay home from school today. Even with Raphael's magic, your body is still probably on the mend. Don't worry, we'll handle your absence and get you your missed work."

Issei took a deep breath. "If you insist."

"Oh, we do," Sona said. "You've earned a day off, Issei. Enjoy it. Just don't do anything too strenuous, all right?"

"I won't," he assured Sona.

"Good to know. And thank you for all your help with this Excalibur mess, Issei."

The line clicked off.

* * *

Just after sunrise, Issei walked down the hall towards the spare room, wondering about Xenovia's current state of mind after finding out about God's death. He knew she had, in all likelihood, returned to his home after Kokabiel had apparently been dealt with, unless she had decided to stay with the Devils for the night, which he considered highly unlikely.

When he knocked on the spare room door, however, it was greeted with several heavy, plodding steps before it opened.

When it did, it revealed the face of Xenovia, her eyes red, puffy and ringed with black circles. She clearly had not slept.

"Xenovia?" Issei asked hesitantly, his voice uncertain.

For a moment or two, she did not say anything in return. When she _did_ respond, the response was not at all what he had expected.

"I'll leave soon, Issei."

"Huh?" Issei said, that sole noise the only thing that escaped his throat.

Xenovia's voice was low, defeated and sounded utterly crushed, as though her emotional state had been thrown beneath a moving steamroller.

"You wouldn't want an exile beneath your roof, would you?"

"...what?" Issei said uncomprehendingly.

"I called the church last night..." Xenovia said, her voice filled with pain. "I told them what Kokabiel said, and then… they excommunicated me on the spot..." Fresh tears began to enter the corners of her eyes. "I can't get it out of my mind… how they just threw me away… like trash..."

She buried her face in her hands, as fresh sobs racked her.

Issei's jaw clenched as frustration washed through him.

It had been his mission to protect Xenovia and Irina. He had promised Griselda that he would.

And he had failed to protect either of them. He had failed Griselda by breaking his promise. He had failed Irina by letting her get hurt. And now he had failed Xenovia, who had lost her way of life because he couldn't keep Kokabiel from running his mouth.

Xenovia pulled her hands from her face as she stared into his eyes, tears flowing down them. "I know… you want me gone..." she forced out, weeping. "Makes sense… no Angel would want anything to do with an exile, right? I'll… I'll go talk to the Devils… maybe they'll… maybe they'll take me in..."

The blue-haired exorcist sniffled. It was not the sound of the calm, confident exorcist who he had met that night in the church, who had defeated a Cerberus with a single sword swing and dueled with an Excalibur fusion. It was the sound of a sad and frightened little girl, torn from the only life she had ever known, to be cast off into a world she barely knew.

Issei's reaction was not what she had anticipated. He did not raise his voice or demand she leave.

Instead, she was utterly shocked to find his arms wrapping around her, pulling her close in a tight hug. Even more shocking to her were his next words.

"No… don't go… you don't have to… stay as long as you need to..."

She could hear the pain in his voice, frustration laced with anger, but as close as she was, she could not see his eyes narrowing.

"But..." Xenovia asked, still crying, "...why? Why would you… why would an Angel..."

"I promised I'd protect you," Issei said, his voice straining slightly. "You and Irina both… Xenovia, I'm so sorry... Irina's hurt, you're exiled… I promise you... I _will_ find a way to fix this..."

"You..." Xenovia said, sniffling once again, "...you really mean it?"

"Yes," Issei said, his voice incredibly quiet.

Xenovia's arms slid around Issei, squeezing him tighter than Irina ever did.

"Th-thank you, Issei! Thank you so much!"

Issei's only reply was to squeeze her back.

* * *

 _And cut._


	33. Woes in Writing

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Xenovia stayed in his arms for a couple of minutes afterwards, basking in what comfort the brunette Angel could offer her. She was still extremely worried for what the future would hold, but for those brief minutes, she enjoyed his embrace. The blue-haired, now former exorcist had been thrown out of the church for knowing of God's death, but somehow it felt as though the Lord's love was still with her through his servant, Issei.

Issei, for his part, was in shock, but happy to provide her some comfort all the same.

After those minutes passed, Xenovia pulled back quite suddenly.

"Well..." she said, her voice somewhat shaky but clearly more confident than before, "...I'll leave you to it..."

She vanished back into her room.

* * *

Issei sat in his room for more than an hour, staring at the ceiling until he saw tendrils of sunlight creep through the window. Against the protest of his sore muscles, he forced himself to dress and get ready for school, as though he had any intention of actually going. The teen fully intended to take Sona up on her request; he did not want to face the pressures of schoolwork. Not until he had put things right.

Not that he had any idea _how_ he was going to do that.

* * *

After eating breakfast, keeping quiet throughout the meal, Issei bid farewell to his mother and father.

He did not, however, go to school, nor did his bags contain his school supplies. Instead, they contained simple street clothes, which he changed into after sneaking back into his house.

Once that was done and he had sufficiently hidden the actual supplies and bag, Issei Hyoudou formed into a cross.

* * *

The Angels outside the gate were rather surprised to find him approaching this early on Friday, his wings and halo already out for identification.

"Issei!" called one, attempting to greet him. They had become rather familiar with his image, given that he went by the gates quite frequently. "You're here early!"

"Hello," Issei replied, his tone devoid of its usual enthusiasm.

"Issei? Are you alright?" the female guard asked.

He shrugged. "I've been better."

"What do you mean?"

"It was a long night, put it that way," he groaned as he pushed the gate open and walked through it.

His sore muscles were not making it any easier to figure out how to fix the problem.

* * *

Issei's pace did not slow until he had entered the gathering hall, and even then only slightly.

How much time had he spent in this place, chatting with his fellow Saints? How many tips and tricks had he obtained from little bits of information, all cobbling together to form his swordsmanship and magical skills? How much time had he spent just absorbing this wonderful world called First Heaven?

Today, however, he was literally too sore over what had happened the previous night to care.

"Good morning, Issei!" called Mirana Shatarova. "You're here pretty early."

"Morning," Issei replied, his voice tired.

"Come here, sit down and chat with me, won't you?"

Issei slowly obliged, groaning slightly.

"So, I see you're back on your feet and healthy as ever," Mirana started, her voice cheerful. "That's a relief. I heard what happened from Raphael. You really did take a beating, didn't you?"

Issei shrugged, his face appearing as though he had not slept in a week, despite it not even being eight in the morning.

Mirana's smile vanished. "Issei, what's wrong?"

Issei shrugged again. "Other than feeling like I've been run through a wood chipper, nothing, really."

"Well... the situation with the Excalibur theft...? How is it?"

Issei shrugged a third time, and only then did Mirana notice Issei wince slightly when he did so. "Resolved."

She leaned back somewhat in her chair, folding her hands in her lap. "Resolved, you say? Well then, are you aware of what's now required of you?"

Issei shook his head, making Mirana sigh.

"I need to chat with Griselda about that… she _really_ should have told you all of this. To be clear, this is nothing bad, Issei. All we need is a detailed report of the incident between yourself and Kokabiel, for the sake of record and future reference."

She stood. "Follow me."

* * *

The two exited the gathering hall before taking flight and heading towards another building, Issei's back making known its displeasure all the way.

Issei noted, with a small amount of envy, the Ace's six wings.

When they reached the building and stepped inside, Issei was mildly surprised to find what appeared to be a modern office space. Dozens of cubicles were set up, each of them fitted with a desk at which an Angel sat doing some paperwork or taking phone calls. Everything was bathed in an impersonal, white florescent glow.

"Heaven's bureaucracy," Mirana supplied. "Managing some of the church's affairs, monitoring the different branches, that sort of thing."

Issei nodded, finding the general normalcy of the sight oddly unsettling.

After a few twists and turns, passing by numerous cubicles, they walked into an enormous room, filled with every type of supply an office might need, stacked on shelves labeled for ease of access.

It did not take long to find a shelf labeled "Reports" in just about every language a person might comprehend.

After pulling one from the shelf, Mirana then proceeded to add a small stack of scrap paper and a few pens to the pile.

"Here you go. Everything you'll need. If you're wondering how the report needs to be written, remember to keep the tone formal. No slang, no contractions, none of that. You can use a first-person tone, but that's about as informal as you can be. We don't care what language you use; the Seraphs can easily have it translated later. As for content…"

Mirana exhaled. "Just write down everything that happened, from the moment you met the exorcists to the last thing you remember during your fight with Kokabiel. Get that report in within a few days, okay?"

Issei nodded again, thanking her before turning and walking away.

* * *

The Ace of Hearts, meanwhile, was quietly sighing in relief. She and the other Brave Saints had heard from the Ace of Clubs that morning about what had happened to Issei. No one there would admit it, but they were all incredibly worried for one of Heaven's youngest Saints, none more so than Dulio and the Hearts deck.

She knew it was probably foolish to worry so much; Raphael's healing magic was legendary for its sheer potency. Yet that had been no comfort to her or to anyone else; all that would relieve that fear would be to see Issei up and about.

And she knew there was one person who needed to know more than anyone else.

Mirana assumed the form of a cross.

* * *

Issei, for his part, walked back out of the office in complete silence, sparing a glance at nobody on his way. The other Angels paid him no mind, all of them absorbed in their work.

Making his way back to his room, he decided to just spend the day there and knock the report out in a single day.

It wasn't as though he could do much else; he could not return to Kuoh without drawing attention to himself, and there was nothing for him on the other six floors of Heaven anyway.

After arriving in his room, he walked towards his desk and set his supplies down. Then, he returned to the door, shut it, and locked it.

Once that was done, Issei returned to his desk, and like a machine, began to write, ignoring the stabbing pain in his wrist as he did so.

* * *

Upon arriving in Zebel, Mirana was greeted only by Michael, who was reading through some report or another as she arrived. Immediately, she dropped into the expected bow.

"Ah, Mirana Shatarova," he said, his voice warm. "Is there something I can do for you? You may rise."

Upon standing, she faced Michael with an expression of unabashed joy. "Lord Michael, is my King available? I have good news for her."

Michael nodded before shifting into a cross and disappearing.

A minute or so later, the King of Hearts appeared where the King of Spades had been standing, causing Mirana to bow once more.

"Rise, my dear Ace," she said, her tone flooded with concern. "Is something the matter?"

Mirana nodded. "It's to do with your Jack, my Lady."

The sole female Seraph's eyes widened slightly. "Is he all right?"

The Ace of Hearts nodded. "Yes. It seems that Lord Raphael's magic worked its wonders. He's back on his feet, if understandably rather sore. He's currently in the process of writing his report on the incident with Kokabiel."

Gabriel smiled, and Mirana could see the relief wash across her features. "My Ace, I have a request."

"Anything."

"Tell him something for me."

* * *

Issei had barely been working ten minutes when he was interrupted by a pounding on the door. When he answered, Mirana stood there, and she did not give him any chance to speak.

"Lady Gabriel says she wants your report handed to her in person. Give it to her when you're done with it."

Her words were curt, quick, and calm, and she vanished into a cross just as quickly. Off to work, no doubt.

Issei sighed as he threw himself back at the report, trying to ignore his sore muscles and his slowly building anger.

* * *

The Jack of Hearts very quickly discovered why Mirana had given him extra paper. With all the details he had to include about his meetings with the exorcists and Devils, not to mention the dealings with Raynare and Kokabiel, he quickly ran past the sheets provided in the base report. He started having to take frequent breaks simply to let his hand recover.

The only thing he edited was Irina's first set of actions towards him; instead of what she had actually done, he claimed that she had simply bowed to him in the proper manner of an exorcist.

He could at least keep _that_ promise.

* * *

It was not until past five in the afternoon that Issei finished the report.

Throughout the day, his mood continually worsened as he tried to think of a way to fix Xenovia's exile and get her back her life.

The only way he'd come up with was reckless, but seemed workable enough.

He could only hope his wings bought him as much credibility as the exorcist's reactions would indicate.

* * *

When he arrived in Zebel, Issei wordlessly bowed to Gabriel, who quickly ushered him to his feet.

Before he could get a single word out, however, Issei found himself in a tight, fierce hug.

"L-Lady Gabriel!" he spluttered, not prepared for the sudden display of affection from his dear King.

"It's good to see that you're safe," Gabriel whispered in his ear. "You've no idea how worried I was..."

She gave one more squeeze before releasing him. Then, she gestured towards the papers in his hand.

"So, this is your report?" she asked, her tone now extremely formal as she began to page through it. Issei's only reply was a nod.

Gabriel was apparently a speed reader, because she read through the entire report in under three minutes.

"Thank you, Issei," she said once she was finished. "It's quite detailed; this should prove helpful for our records. Raphael has already reported the exact details of the final contact between himself and the Devils in Kuoh."

"Thank you, my Lady," Issei said, his tone robotic, trying not to reveal his rage, which was near boiling at this point.

Gabriel frowned slightly. "Well then, I think it's time I get an answer."

* * *

 _And cut_.


	34. Frustration's Release

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"What is it, Lady Gabriel?" Issei asked, struggling to keep his voice calm.

Gabriel's frown grew. "I require clarification of a certain point of information."

Issei sighed. "All right... what do you need to know?"

"Simply put, Issei," Gabriel said, her tone shifting to one unfamiliar to him, "I want to know why, when you brought the young exorcist here for treatment of her wounds, that you did not seek reinforcements from Heaven."

Issei swallowed and did not answer.

Gabriel's face had shifted. The happiness at seeing that he was still alive had vanished. Now, within her eyes, he saw a slowly simmering anger.

And somehow, Issei was more terrified of this simple expression than he was when Kokabiel was attempting to slice him up.

"I asked you a question, Issei."

Issei's own fury, which had spent the entire afternoon building up until it was almost uncontrollable, had fled him the instant he heard the tone of his King's voice.

No longer were her words said with the friendly, supportive and somewhat playful inflection she used in private, nor the more formal one she employed among larger company.

Now, her tone was the one of an incredibly powerful and dangerous being whose rage, however restrained, had been foolishly incited.

Issei often found it easy to forget just who his King was. It was quite easy for him to see her as a motherly figure, tolerant of his ignorance whilst she and her Saints helped rectify it. She was always there, knowing exactly how to play situations and to encourage him.

None of that, however, altered her identity in the slightest. In the few seconds it took for Gabriel to say the few sentences she had, Issei was reminded that before all else, Gabriel was a Seraph, an Angel thousands of years old, possessing immense strength and equally vast authority. He was no more than a speck before her, a small child who had stepped out of line that she could punish at a whim.

Never had Issei felt smaller in his King's presence.

"Lady Gabriel... I... I..."

"You?"

"I... I panicked..." Issei stammered.

"And thus," Gabriel said, "you left Heaven in a futile attempt to stop a Fallen Angel cadre in a fight you must have known you had no chance of winning?"

Issei did not respond, refusing to meet her gaze.

Gabriel stepped forwards, and her hand raised, making Issei flinch.

The King of Hearts blinked, then lowered her arm. "I have no intention of striking you, Issei Hyoudou. It would accomplish nothing. But do know that the blame for your injuries, and for the near-victory of Kokabiel, rests squarely on your shoulders. You had ample opportunity to seek our aid, and given the circumstances, it would have been given freely. But you did not. I will not injure you in any capacity to emphasize my point, but understand this, my Jack: I am _very_ disappointed in you."

Issei bit his lip. "I apologize, Lady Gabriel."

Gabriel's frown only deepened. "I am not the one you need to apologize to, Issei Hyoudou. Your apologies are owed to, if no one else, Xenovia Quarta, Rias Gremory, and the latter's peerage. They suffered because of your poor decision."

Only then did Issei's anger begin to blaze anew, having been reminded of its source, and Issei's eyes unconsciously narrowed. Gabriel's proceeded to do the same.

"Is this display meant to impress me, Issei?" Gabriel asked with a hint of sarcasm. "Because it does not."

Issei blinked. "No, Lady Gabriel... just... Xenovia Quarta's been kicked out of the church. All because Kokabiel told her about the death of God."

"That is as much your fault as Kokabiel's."

The Jack's teeth clenched. "I'm aware of that, Lady Gabriel. You made that clear."

"Do not even _think_ to raise your voice with me, Issei Hyoudou," Gabriel warned him, her tone dangerous. "I do not hate you for the mistakes you have made. Quite the opposite; I still care deeply for you." Her eyes narrowed further. "I will _not_ , however, accept insubordination of any kind from you or any other Saint."

"I understand, my Lady," Issei said, avoiding her gaze. "But... just apologizing to her's worthless. If I don't get her back her place in the church, then they're just empty words."

"Perhaps," Gabriel said, shrugging. "But it is not necessarily your concern."

Issei's hands balled into fists. "I still have to help her. I have to find a way to fix what's happened to her. I _did_ promise Griselda I would try to keep both Irina and Xenovia safe. I don't care if you don't want me to, I'm still going to try."

Gabriel frowned. "And how do you plan to do that?"

"I… I was thinking to tell the church directly."

The King of Hearts blinked once. Twice.

Then, she covered her face with her hand.

"Issei, if _that_ is your plan, then perhaps I should imprison you in Second Heaven right now and save my brother the trouble."

Issei must have been quiet for longer than he intended, because Gabriel sighed and then spoke.

"My Jack, what do you think that ordering the church to undo excommunication would accomplish?"

"What, would they just ignore me?"

Gabriel sighed once more. "No, Issei, but they would not immediately comply. This young woman knows of the death of God, and undoing excommunication of those who find out this information before reaching the highest ranks of the church is all but unheard of. Their reaction would be to put your demand under consideration whilst they contacted my brother to find out if you, a lower-ranking Angel, had been granted the authority to ask that of them."

Issei swallowed. "And then…?"

Her eyes narrowed again. "Issei Hyoudou, as a former human, you would be a better authority than I. Thus, I pose the question to you: Do humans find issue with those who act far outside their authority? When subordinates go behind the backs of their superiors, is that appreciated by those in command?"

The Jack's eyes widened.

"No, I did not think so," Gabriel said, her tone cold. "For all the differences between humans and Angels, Issei, that is one trait that is shared between them. Whether you believe it or not, Michael is _very_ capable of anger. And if you wish to anger him, short of threatening the souls in Third Heaven, there is no better way to do it than to go behind his back. To attempt to subvert the policies of the Church for your own end. And my brother will not regard ignorance or intention as excuses. Angels have been cast down for actions like what you describe, Issei."

"And so I basically have to sit here and watch while Xenovia gets her whole life torn away from her?" Issei asked, trying to keep his voice calm. Gabriel, however, noticed a slight tremble in it.

"That is not what I said either, Issei Hyoudou. However, a brute-force attempt will only end in disaster." She gave a shrug, her eyebrows raising. "Unless, of course, you've had a change of heart and wish to join the ranks of the Fallen Angels?"

Issei slowly shook his head. "No, but… I'm not walking away. Even if it wasn't _my_ job to keep them safe, I see Xenovia as a friend, and that means I have to try and do… _something_. _Anything_. What kind of friend am I if I just walk away and leave her twisting in the wind?" The brunette sighed. "Lady Gabriel, you're right about the fact that I screwed things up. It's my fault that Kokabiel even got the chance to do what he did. And that's why I have to try and fix things, however I can. Call it atonement or whatever else you like, I don't care. To me, it's an obligation to the people I care about."

For the first time that conversation, he met her gaze.

"And so I ask, Lady Gabriel. What can I possibly do to fix what's happened?"

For a moment, Gabriel said nothing, frowning.

Then, one side of her mouth curled into a grin.

"You see, Issei, _that_ is the sort of behavior I expect from my Saints."

* * *

 _And cut_.


	35. Making Some Preparations

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

 _Read the chapter 2 author's note if you haven't already._

* * *

"Issei!" the brunette's father called when he arrived home. "Where have you been?" His voice was the normal, stern voice of a somewhat annoyed father, blissfully ignorant of what his son had spent the last several hours of his life doing.

"The club meeting ran long," Issei mumbled. "Sorry, didn't realize the time..."

His father sighed. "Well, whatever. Dinner's ready. Care to join us?"

Having not eaten lunch, Issei was utterly famished, wolfing down his dinner as though he hadn't eaten in a week.

* * *

As the night wore on, his thoughts were consumed by what had happened to Xenovia. How she had been tossed out of the church without a second thought simply for knowing the truth of the situation.

The more Issei thought about it, the less sense it made, and the angrier he became.

Why should she be excommunicated for knowing the truth? From what Dulio had told him, the upper echelons of the church knew about God's death, and yet they were free to keep their positions. If they were that worried about breaking the faith of humans, why not just say that Michael was God? Hell, it wouldn't even be a lie!

Issei ground his teeth as he tried to remain calm, reminding himself of what Gabriel had told him he needed to do.

"Hey, Ddraig, you got any suggestions?"

 **"** **About what?"**

Issei didn't bother asking him about his "discussion" with Gabriel.

"On what to do about Xenovia?"

He heard the dragon sigh. **"Issei, like I said, you shouldn't get attached.** **She probably won't stay too long."**

"Who cares? She's still my friend. I have to at least _try_ to do right by her."

 **"** **And what are you planning to say?"**

"I just asked _you_ for suggestions."

 **"** **Issei, I'm a dragon living in your arm who doesn't exactly like the Heaven you serve.** **I don't have a single shred of a clue as to what you should say. Convincing Michael to get her back into that church after she's been excommunicated, not to mention finding out about God's death, requires your talents, not mine."**

Issei sighed. "I know. Just… there has to be some way to do it."

 **"** **You're on your own on this one, partner."**

Issei was left to grind his teeth some more.

* * *

The next day, when he arrived in Heaven, he was greeted by none other than the Queen of Hearts and the Ace of Clubs, both of whom waved him over to their table in the central gathering hall.

Before Issei could get a word in edgewise, Griselda started speaking, her tone calm.

Yet despite this, the Jack of Hearts could see that her eyes were bright red.

"Issei… Lady Gabriel has already told me everything. I... I don't hate you, Issei."

Issei nodded, eyes shut as he felt guilt wash over him. "I'm sorry, Griselda. I really am. And I'm going to fix this."

Griselda nodded, her next words said in a low voice. "Even if you don't, Issei, Xenovia and Irina are both alive… that's all that matters." She laid a hand across Issei's. "And for that, Issei… I thank you. But Issei, I must ask..."

Issei looked at her, eyes pained. "Yes?"

"Where is Xenovia now?"

Using his other hand, Issei pointed towards the ground. "My house. I'm letting her stay there while she figures out her next move, whatever it ends up being. She has all the time she needs, don't worry..."

A weak smile crawled across Griselda's face. "Thank you, Issei. What I said before is true… you really are quite a kind young man..."

Issei's lips turned downward at that. "So is that what they do to anyone who figures out the truth? Just… you figure out that God's dead, you either hide it or you're excommunicated?"

Deethelm sighed. "Pretty much. Yeah, it's harsh, but what else can we do, exactly? If it became common knowledge that God's dead… well, that would be the end of Heaven."

Issei shook his head, his teeth gnashing in his jaw. "That might true, but that can't be the whole story. There has to be some other way to deal with this… I mean, the higher-ups of the church know about it, and they're still in their posts."

"They're also the ones tasked with excommunication," Deethelm countered.

The Jack of Hearts gnashed his teeth some more. "This whole system is just… it's convoluted and totally unfair."

Griselda nodded slowly. "It is, Issei… but we Brave Saints can't do anything about it."

Deethelm gave a sad shrug. "If you want to take it up the chain, Issei… take it up with Lord Michael."

"Was already planning on it, thanks."

"Any idea what you're going to say?" Deethelm inquired.

Issei's shoulders slumped.

"I'll take that as a "no"."

"Well," Issei said, "I've got... _some_ idea, but... I'm not really sure if it'll be good enough."

At those words, Griselda perked up slightly.

"Why not ask Lady Gabriel, Issei? She seems to support your intent. Perhaps she would be willing to help you."

Issei slapped his forehead at that and immediately formed into a cross.

* * *

When Issei arrived in Zebel, he was greeted, as luck would have it, by his own King.

"Rise, Issei," Gabriel said as she looked up from the paperwork she had been looking over and took sight of her bowing Jack. "Is there something you require from me?" she asked as she stepped close to him.

"Lady Gabriel," Issei said as he rose, keeping his voice measured, calm and formal, "You told me that you had arranged for me to meet with Lord Michael tomorrow. Would you be willing to...?"

"Give you a few pointers?" Gabriel asked, tipping her head to one side. "Give you some advice as to what you might want to prepare for?" She grinned wider as she put a finger on his forehead, tilting his head to look upwards at her. "Or perhaps you'd like me to clear your mind a bit further?"

Only then did Issei realize that his eyes had slid down to stare straight at her well-formed figure.

"The… first option, I guess," Issei stammered, turning redder than Rias Gremory's hair.

Gabriel let out a warm laugh. "Well, Issei, if that's what you wish… I suppose I can spare a moment."

Her finger left his head, and her demeanor shifted from amusement to the calm, composed attitude one would expect of one of Heaven's Great Seraphim. "My dear Jack, what you need to consider is the logical reasoning. While emotional appeal is the core of the issue here, you should have empirical thought to back it up."

Issei blinked.

Gabriel sighed. "In other words, Issei, simply saying "It's not fair" won't get you anywhere. I've tried to tell my brother that, and so have at least three other Seraphs. If he won't change the church's policies for _our_ appeals to emotion, he certainly won't change them for those of a Saint not even three months into their tenure. What you need is factual, logical reasoning to prove your point. Do you understand me now?"

"I think so..." Issei said, nodding slowly as he realized that she was trying to point him in the right direction without giving him the answer directly. "Yes, my Lady. I think I've got it now."

"Good," she said. "Is there anything else?"

"No, Lady Gabriel. That's it. Good day."

"Good day, Issei. Return to Heaven first thing tomorrow, understand?"

"Yes, my Lady."

* * *

Descending back to First Heaven, Issei spread his four wings and began to fly about absentmindedly, considering his King's advice. Higher than most Angels flew, he was alone in the air as he steadily worked out what he was going to do and what he was going to say.

Only after nearly an hour of thinking did he decide on a strategy.

* * *

As he descended towards the gate of First Heaven, he could make out two Angels standing guard there, and that was all he needed.

Upon his landing, the female of the two turned to look at him with some interest.

"Curious," Issei said, his tone casual, "what are the rules on… visitation, as it were?"

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, there's a young lady I'd like to bring here. _Not_ for that," Issei said, adding the final three words as a countermeasure; he could already see the guard's mouth starting to open. "She's human. Any way I could do that?"

The guard shrugged. "Well, are you willing to sponsor her?"

"What?"

"Are you willing to take responsibility for everything she may do while she's here?"

Issei nodded, causing the guard to shrug once again; clearly this guard favored a terse sort of syntax.

"Then head to the records building and get the form. It should be under "visitor". Present it to us when you bring her here and she'll be let in. From there, she's your responsibility. She screws anything up, it's on your head."

With that, she turned back towards the gate, clearly indicating the conversation was over, and Issei was already in flight besides.

* * *

Issei would be the first to admit that he hated paperwork, especially after that little epic he had written the day before detailing the mission gone rather awry.

But it seemed there was no escaping it.

So it was that he found himself back inside the records building of First Heaven, wandering

Within a minute, he stood once more before the wall of forms, and almost immediately, he located the required form. Once he had, he left with the same urgency with which he had entered.

A short flight later, he entered the Hearts building. From there, he proceeded to his room, deposited the two page form on the desk, then left just as quickly to return to the main gathering hall.

* * *

Upon his entrance, Issei returned to table where the Queen of Hearts and Ace of Clubs were still seated, neither having moved since Issei had left about an hour and a half earlier.

"So, the Jack of Hearts returns," Deethelm called. "You get shot down by him?"

Issei shook his head. "He's not here. The meeting's tomorrow… gives me time to finish my plan."

Griselda raised an eyebrow at this, her eyes having cleared from their previously reddened state. "Your plan for what?"

Issei bit his lip. "How to handle this whole situation..."

* * *

The Queen of Hearts declined to train Issei for at least a few days, citing his only freshly healed injuries; Issei was only too happy to accept her mercy, due to everything but his wings still hurting. Instead, they simply chatted and discussed a great deal of small talk, each trying very hard to avoid bringing up the subject of Xenovia. Deethelm left less than half an hour into their conversation, citing some work he had to deal within the church.

After Queen and Jack had eaten lunch together in the main hall, Griselda moved to leave for the same reason Deethelm had.

Before she did, however…

"Mmph!"

Issei suddenly found himself being hugged by the Queen of Hearts, her whispers entering his ear.

"Thank you, Issei… thank you for keeping Xenovia safe. You truly are a worthy Saint."

With that, she released him, and was gone but a moment later.

After a few minutes, Issei followed suit.

* * *

The brunette, however, did not go downwards.

"Yes, she can receive visitors if she wishes," the Angel behind the desk said. "Name, please?"

"Issei Hyoudou."

Once he had explained himself, Fifth Heaven's medical facilities were quite accepting of Issei's desire to visit the injured exorcist. All that was needed was -

 _This guy is the slowest writer_ _in all of Heaven…_

After an excruciatingly long time, the Angel finished writing the Jack's name in whatever language he was using; Issei was left clueless as to what it was, not recognizing any of the characters.

"Well then," the Angel said, "follow me, please."

Stepping out from behind the desk, the Angel started walking down the hall, Issei falling into step behind him.

* * *

For only a few moments they marched, neither passing a word between them, before they came to a stop at the door Irina was behind.

"Wait here a moment."

The Angel disappeared behind the door, reappearing after less than fifteen seconds and indicating for Issei to enter.

* * *

"Issei!" Irina squealed as soon as she saw him. Despite still being stuck in bed, her voice was as energetic as the Jack's memories recalled.

"Hey, Irina," Issei said, a weak smile coming to his face as the guilt began to rise once again, despite his attempts to crush it. "How are you?"

"A bit sore, but I'm okay. They've patched me up pretty well. They say they wanna keep me here, but it's so _boring_ in this place! I wanna get out and run and do fun stuff and..."

Irina had drifted off into her own little world and had begun to ramble on, causing Issei's smile to strengthen.

 _Yep, she's okay…_

"...so Issei..."

The brunette's head tipped to the side. "Yeah?"

"God's dead, right?"

Issei's blood froze solid at those words, and he was certain he was about to have another exorcist thrown out of the church on his hands.

This only made her next words even more surprising.

"Lord Michael told me..." Irina's face had shifted to a sad expression. "So… he's gone..."

"Lord Michael told you himself?" Issei asked, now quite shocked.

"Yes," Irina said somberly, before her face cheered up. "But he's apparently thinking about making me one of his personal guards! And maybe even Sainthood later on!"

Issei's jaw dropped open, before he began to laugh. "Fantastic, Irina!"

"Isn't it, though!" Irina said, sitting up and opening her arms. "Issei, would you mind…?"

Her face had shifted to an expression that melted Issei's heart into mush, and he quickly accepted.

* * *

 _And cut_.

 _...man, I ought to write a story where Apophis and Ra were sealed instead of Ddraig and Albion._

 _Or maybe that's just me wanting any excuse to call someone "Eclipse Dragon" repeatedly. There's just something about that title I find inherently badass._


	36. The Newest Crystal

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Living for millennia had many downsides to the leader of Heaven.

Yes, he was able to revel in the advancement of humanity, and he had had all the time in the world to enjoy the company of his fellow Angels.

Yet those many years had also come with the cost of both fate's whims and his own choices. The death of his father, the being known as "God", was one such whim.

Michael had succeeded in reactivating Heaven's system, but it hadn't been long before even the Archangel had realized that he could not run the system anywhere near as well as his father could.

Miracles became far less frequent. Faith decreased, and Heaven weakened. With all these worries piled onto him, it was inevitable that mistakes would be made. Many were fixable.

Just as many, however, were not, and all Michael could do was bear the shame.

Few mistakes brought him more shame than the Holy Sword Project.

* * *

It had seemed a simple enough proposition – allow Valper Galilei, a man who was known to love Holy Swords immensely to run tests on volunteers to figure out what allowed the chosen few to wield Holy Swords.

That had been what was proposed to him and the upper echelons of the church, anyway.

Only far too late had Michael learned of the utter horror show that the Holy Sword Project had become. Only far too late had he learned that Valper Galilei's love of Holy Swords would be better described as a maniacal obsession.

Instead of the carefully selected volunteers, Valper had used children from the church, who had been explicitly forbidden from even volunteering themselves.

Instead of the approved tests, which would have been harmless, the unwilling children suffered horribly at the hands of the vile archbishop's insane schemes.

And then, when the research was finished, they were all murdered.

That, more than anything else, was beyond Michael's understanding. Once Valper's research had been seized, it had become painfully obvious that there was no need to kill the children; if all that was needed was a gene, wouldn't small samples of blood be enough?

A small amount of study was enough to confirm that thought, and it became the method by which crystals were produced.

Michael had personally excommunicated Valper the instant he had found out about the archbishop's mania, and condemned him; yet, the Archangel knew that this was a weak gesture at best.

Excommunicating the insane archbishop did not fix anything.

It could not revive the slain children. For all his power, he could not give them back their lives.

* * *

Thus, as one might suspect, when Gabriel had requested a second project to research another one of the church's swords, the leader of Heaven had been rather apprehensive. He had put his faith in the church to create a way for any exorcist to use a Holy Sword, and it had backfired spectacularly.

Yet Michael also could not disagree with his sister's assessment. This Jack was inexperienced, knowing little, while also being in possession of the Boosted Gear. It was a perfect storm of rotten luck for the new Angel, both to be attacked for unknowingly possessing the Red Dragon Emperor and to have the current White Dragon Emperor as a rival.

And so, in spite of his own apprehension, Michael had acquiesced. He had gone to a man in the Vatican, and declared to him what it was he was seeking.

Leo Ornstein, the fifth wielder of Saint George's sword, had immediately agreed, just as Michael had hoped he would.

* * *

And so, the research had begun, but it had been run very differently than the research done on the Excalibur.

Father Ornstein had given his blood for testing without question, and Michael, with the help of the Seraphs oversaw every single test and comparison that was done upon the blood of the natural-born Holy Sword wielders of the church. He would often speak to the old pastor, asking him if anything excessive had been demanded by the clergy.

Michael refused to take even the tiniest risk of this attempt going awry.

The research's progress had been rapid, and it was after barely a month of seeking that the specific gene was identified that allowed Ornstein to use the blade.

Another month later, and it had been extracted from the blood samples.

One full week after that, the end result had been finished – a new type of crystal had been birthed, which all research indicated would allow Issei to wield Saint George's sword.

This just left one thing to do.

* * *

"I am more grateful than I have words for, Father."

The seventy-seven year old man seated by the fireplace in the ancient library chuckled. "Think nothing of it, Lord Michael. I am a member of the church; it is my honor to aid Heaven's mission."

Ornstein reached out with the fire poker he was holding, turning one of the logs over. "Though I must ask, Lord Michael – why now?"

The Seraph tipped his head to the side, the crystal gripped in his left hand. "What do you mean?"

"I remember..." the old man said, his eyes shutting and his head shaking. "I remember the day we found out about the result of the first Holy Sword Project like it was yesterday. I remember so well your excommunication of Valper."

He turned the log once more. "What I'm asking, Lord Michael, is… why the interest in Ascalon now?" The elderly dragonslayer smiled slightly as he looked over the arm of the chair. "Is it to do with the Jack of Hearts?"

Michael blinked, confused as to how the old pastor knew of his sister's Jack. Issei, to his knowledge, had yet to be delegated to the church on any missions, no matter how tiny. Gabriel had insisted on letting him grow stronger and more accustomed to being an Angel before she did that, and the other Seraphs had seen her logic quite plainly.

"I heard about him from one of the congregation," Ornstein explained, his face amused. "Apparently, Lady Gabriel's Queen mentioned him to her students at one point or another. Not by name or anything of the sort. Just his title."

Michael sighed, deciding that there was no point in lying about it. "Yes, it is for his sake. He will need it for what is likely to come." The Seraph laid a hand on the old man's shoulder. "I ask that you not spread that piece of information."

Ornstein smiled. "Thy will be done, Lord Michael."

Michael turned around, before looking back forlornly at the elderly pastor.

"The offer is still open, Father Ornstein. We still have cards unused."

Ornstein gave a light sigh, though his smile never wavered. "Lord Michael, I refused you before, and I must refuse you again. I do not seek Sainthood. My old bones crave rest more than anything else, and I've no desire to live forever. Better for me to leave the Brave Saint's positions to the church's new blood."

"And yet you were among the most skilled exorcists of the church," Michael countered. "Even as a simple mentor to the newest Saints, your presence would be well appreciated. That, of course, is before we address your skills as the church's premier dragon slayer."

Another chuckle came from the old pastor. "Lord Michael, I can count on my fingers the number of times that my skills with Ascalon were required. As for my skills as an exorcist… you've plenty of capable exorcists within your decks already. My presence would be of no additional help to that cause." He put the fire poker down and folded his hands in his lap.

"Though… I would, at some point, seek to meet the Jack of Hearts, if it would be possible. Simply to know who am I passing this torch to."

Michael sighed, disappointed at being refused once more. "I shall see. If circumstances allow it… I shall as well. Good night, Father Ornstein."

"Good night, Lord Michael."

Heaven's leader vanished into a cross.

* * *

 _And cut. Yeah, pretty short, yadda yadda. Just want to give an idea of where Michael was and what he was doing._

 _And yes, I know what you're all thinking with regards to the pastor's name._ _And yes, you're right._


	37. A Visit to Heaven

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Only when the hospital staff of Fifth Heaven practically dragged him out did Issei leave Irina, returning to First Heaven to grab the form and then descending back to his home.

Only once he had did he consider the thought he had shouted down.

 _Irina found out about the death of God, and she might get made into a Saint_ _while Xenovia's tossed out?_

Issei took a deep breath, trying not to become infuriated once more and filing the information away for later use. Once he had, he went to his room and began to read over the form.

 _Let's see… my name… date… purpose of visit…_

All of this information was filled in quickly. The reason the brunette gave was not the full story, but it was not untrue, either.

And he certainly would never put the other reason down on the record. Issei wasn't stupid enough to believe that that would _ever_ fly.

Not to mention that he wasn't sure if it would even come to pass at all.

* * *

It was just as he was drawing the form to a close, only one piece of information left, that the knock came to the door.

And when the door was opened, the blue-haired young woman he'd met just days earlier greeted him. Her words to him were quiet.

"Issei… can we talk?"

Xenovia took a seat on the bed upon being let in. For a moment, she stared at the floor, not looking at him.

Then, she asked him a rather unexpected question.

"Issei… I know we haven't known each other very long, but… would you hate me if I went to the Devils?"

Issei blinked. "What do you mean?"

Xenovia looked up at him, eyes uncertain. "Issei… I… I don't have anywhere to go. And I don't want to freeload off of you forever. If the Devils need a new Evil Piece… then maybe that's what I should do, but… I don't want to betray you..."

Issei tipped his head to one side. "Betray me?" He shook his head. "Xenovia, would you consider me your friend? Because I'd call you mine."

"Err..." Xenovia replied, evidently unsure of what to say. "...I'd like to think so..."

Issei shrugged. "Then if you feel that's for the best… no, you wouldn't have betrayed me at all. Just because we'd be on opposite sides doesn't mean we'd have to hate each other. You're my friend, Xenovia. Devil, human or anything else."

Xenovia's eyes widened in surprise.

"Xenovia," Issei continued, "I want the best for you, just like any friend, but… in this case, it isn't my place to say what that is. If you think being reincarnated as a Devil is the best course of action, then I'll accept that with no problem."

Xenovia's face turned into a genuine, albeit somewhat weak, smile.

"However," Issei said, wiping the smile from Xenovia's face, "I'd like to ask you do something for me."

"What's that?" Xenovia asked, gulping.

"Hold off on that for a bit," Issei said. "Just a day or two."

"Why?"

Issei sighed. "Because, Xenovia… I'd like to bring you to Heaven tomorrow. And I doubt they'll let you in if you're a Devil."

Xenovia's jaw dropped open. "Y-you'd do that?" she spluttered, completely shocked.

Issei nodded. "I think Griselda would like to talk to you."

"Th-thank you, Issei..."

The Jack gave a slight grin. "Not a problem. It's the least I can do… though, I need a couple pieces of information from you before we do that."

Xenovia blinked. "Yes? What do you need?"

"Your last name, for one thing."

"Quarta," the blue-haired young woman answered immediately.

"Hmm… same as Griselda, isn't it?" Issei commented as he turned to fill in the name on the form.

"Yes," Xenovia said. "What else do you need?"

"Well, let's see here..."

* * *

The blue-haired exorcist gave him the information without a second of questioning. After writing it down, he turned to find Xenovia with an enormous, somewhat goofy grin on her face.

"Issei? What time did you want to…?"

Issei shrugged. "Probably… seven in the morning? Something like that? I got asked to report to Heaven first thing tomorrow."

Xenovia nodded, clearly eager to get going. "I'll be up bright and early, Issei."

Issei nodded back, smiling. "Well then… guess that takes care of that." He stood, intending to go downstairs and get some water. As soon as he stood, however, Xenovia did as well, boldly tossing her arms around him a moment later.

"Thank you, Issei… for everything."

Before Issei could even reply, she was gone, vanished from the room.

* * *

For the rest of the evening, Issei wrote his thoughts onto a piece of paper, organizing his thoughts, his responses to possible questions, and whatever else he thought might come up.

Only after an hour or so did Ddraig barge in.

 **"** **You're really dedicated to this, aren't you?"**

"Yeah."

 **"** **I don't understand you, Issei."**

"Like I told Gabriel, Ddraig, she's my friend. If I'm not willing to stick my neck out for her, what kind of friend am I?"

The dragon seemed to sigh. **"** **Perhaps that's the disconnect.** **"**

Issei blinked. "What are you saying?"

 **"I'm an old dragon, Issei."**

The Jack blinked again. "What do you mean?"

Another sigh came from the gauntlet. **"Issei, I was one of the two Heavenly Dragons. It would serve you well to remember that I am thousands of years old."**

"Yeah, so? Where are you going with this?" Issei asked.

 **"Are you familiar with the phrase "lonely at the top", Issei?"**

"Err... yeah? Are you saying that's what it was like for you?"

 **"Yes. I am infamous for my flames - the ones that did not extinguish until they had burned the target to cinders."**

"Right..."

 **"Do you think anyone wishes to be near a creature who is so immensely strong that it could torch them in an instant if they displeased it?"**

"Well, I mean... I get on well with Lady Gabriel and Lord Michael..."

 **"That is not comparable, Issei. No matter how friendly they are towards you, you must remember that they are ultimately not your friends. They are your leaders; you are but one of many subordinates."**

Issei bit his lip and did not answer.

 **"** **As I was saying, my power isolated me.** **I had no one.** **Those who could not stand against me fled in terror, while those who could regarded me as a meaningless existence. I was alone** **… until I met** _ **him**_ **."**

Issei didn't need to be told who "him" was.

 **"** **Albion was one of very few who my flames had no effect on. Apparently, he was in a similar situation regarding his poison, which didn't work on me. We were happy to have** **an opponent** **to battle.** **That's why we are said to be "fated to fight", Issei.** **"**

"Where are you going with this?"

 **"** **Issei,** **Albion and I** **have** **clash** **ed** **over and over, yes, but that** **doesn't** **make us friends. Not even close. Do you understand,** **now** **? I have never truly had friends, and as such I do not regard friendship in a way even remotely comparable to the way you do** **. I have never known it, so how could I?** **I had not even realized** **I had not** **until** **I was sealed into th** **e** **Sacred** **Gear** **. Nor had I realized my own loneliness until I was sealed.** **"**

Issei looked down at his hand in surprise. "What about your other hosts?"

 **"** **They barely acknowledged my existence. I've gotten more conversation out of you in the last few months than I have from my last ten hosts combined.** **And f** **or that, Issei, I thank you."**

With that, Ddraig fell silent, leaving Issei with a mix of emotions once more.

It boggled the brunette's mind to consider that Ddraig might have been lonely and not even known it. Yet, if the dragon's description of his life was accurate, it was no surprise at all.

Issei shook his head, trying to refocus on the paper before him.

* * *

The next morning, Issei awoke to the screaming buzz of the alarm clock. After turning it off, he was momentarily confused as to why he had set it, given that he knew it was Sunday.

Then, it all came rushing back to him.

Issei hurriedly dressed, before snatching up the form from his desk. After folding the piece of paper on which he'd been writing his thoughts the previous evening and putting it in his pocket, he quietly walked towards the spare room.

Just a few seconds after Issei knocked, the blue-haired young woman answered.

"Morning, Xenovia," Issei said. "You ready to go?"

She eagerly nodded, causing Issei to smile and return her hug from the night before, paper clutched in his left hand, to Xenovia's surprise.

"Only way to do this," Issei said impishly, an unrepentant grin on his face.

A moment later, the two had vanished into a cross.

* * *

Xenovia's eyes had shut as soon as they had begun to shift into the alternate form, but seemingly instantaneously, Issei was speaking to her.

"Xenovia, we're here."

The blue-haired young woman slowly opened her eyes until they were about halfway to fully expanded. Once they reached that point, they snapped the rest of the way.

Laid out before her was a marble path, leading to a pair of enormous gates. Before them stood a pair of Angels, each with wings spread wide and halos in full view.

Through the gate, she could see the buildings, literally set on clouds, scattered around the sky. And about them, in midair or on the paths leading between the buildings…

 _Angels… so many…_

Xenovia's training was still well-ingrained in her, and she suddenly felt incredibly tiny before the hundreds of holy beings, despite most of them not even being aware that she was there.

"You coming or what?"

Xenovia's head snapped upwards to see Issei standing several meters away, near the gate, a grin adorning his features. After forcing her legs to unfreeze, she staggered forward, each step making her feel queasy.

She had been so excited by the prospect of entering Heaven before, but now she was so nervous she could barely think straight.

When the young woman had managed to make it over to stand next to Issei, he began to move forward once again, until one of the Angels called out to him.

"Halt." The voice was bored, evidently having run through this a million times and clearly knowing who Issei was, only demanding because of protocol. "Identify yourself."

Issei took a half step away from Xenovia, before revealing his four wings and halo, whilst holding up the back of his right hand for the guard's examination.

"Issei Hyoudou, Jack of Hearts."

The guard then turned to look over Xenovia, and almost instinctively, she started to drop into a bow.

She was stopped, however, when Issei hooked his hand beneath her arm and dragged her back to her feet.

"No need for that, Xenovia."

The guard nodded towards Xenovia, the female Angel's next words spoken in a somewhat curious, but nonjudgmental, tone.

"Who is this?"

"Err..." Xenovia could barely mumble.

Issei, meanwhile, had far more confidence. "Xenovia Quarta, the human I discussed bringing here yesterday. My guest."

The guard's expression did not change. "You have the form?"

A moment later, it was in her hand.

The Angel scanned the form quickly, checking every piece of information in it was filled, before nodding and looking at Issei. "You verify that everything in this form is complete and correct to the best of your knowledge?"

"I do," Issei replied.

She nodded once again before turning to Xenovia. "You, Xenovia Quarta, understand that you are under the sponsorship of Issei Hyoudou for the duration of your stay within Heaven?"

"I-I do..." Xenovia stammered, her heart in her throat.

The guard offered neither friendliness nor ridicule at Xenovia's nervous response, instead turning to face Issei once more. "You, Issei Hyoudou, understand that you are responsible for any and all of her behavior while she is here, and if she is found to have caused any sort of problem, you will be made to suffer punishment up to and including expulsion from Heaven?"

"I do."

Xenovia couldn't understand how Issei could sound so confident at those words.

The guard nodded yet again as she waved them forward. "Welcome to Heaven, Xenovia Quarta," she said, her tone unwavering from its impeccable formality.

Upon those words, Issei and Xenovia, the latter more hesitantly than the former, walked towards the main gate, pushed it open, and walked through.

Unbeknownst to anyone but himself, Issei was breathing an enormous sigh of relief at the painlessness of the whole process.

* * *

"This way," Issei said, walking up one of the marble paths that connected the buildings on the clouds.

As they walked, Xenovia remained firmly in Issei's shadow, unchecked nervousness going haywire in her veins. Angels, beings she had worshiped with her very soul and that she would have considered herself blessed to even catch a glimpse of, were now all around her, so close she could touch them. Most wandered or flew as they would, only a few noticing her. Every once in a while, Issei would greet one, but for the most part they paid neither of them any mind.

Whenever one did, she would hide further in Issei's shadow, until she was practically hugging his back and nipping his heels every few steps.

After a few minutes, desperate to break the ice and get her mind focused on something, _anything_ else, she tried to make some small talk between herself and the Jack of Hearts.

"Err… Issei? Does it usually take that long to get through the gate?"

An amused snort was his reply. "Put it this way, Xenovia: Most of the time, I don't even stop walking. I just show my wings and my right hand and I'm in. They know who I am, anyway. They only even ask because procedure makes them."

Xenovia nodded, before she realized something else.

"If you need that form to get humans in… how'd you get Irina here for treatment?"

Issei shrugged. "There are some circumstances where procedure can be ignored. Apparently, an Angel showing up with an injured exorcist is one of them."

"I see..."

Xenovia continued walking behind him in silence for the next ten or so minutes.

* * *

It was only after those ten minutes that the Jack and former exorcist stood before a large building, seated on a cloud by itself.

"Err… Issei? What is this?"

Issei looked at her over his shoulder, a grin on his face. "It's the building where Lady Gabriel's Brave Saints, besides me, live. It's a pretty nice place."

With that, Issei and Xenovia walked over to the front door, the brunette yanking it open.

After the bright light of First Heaven's outdoors, the darkness was as blinding as any sunlight. Xenovia walked somewhat slowly through this unfamiliar environment, while Issei strode on ahead at a much more rapid pace.

At the end of the hall, Issei suddenly spoke somewhat loudly.

"Hey, Griselda! Someone's here to see you!"

Only then did Xenovia remember why she had originally come here.

As soon as she rounded the corner, she caught sight of three Angels, all female, seated at a table in a large chamber; evidently some sort of gathering hall for Gabriel's Saints.

She recognized only one of them, but what a person to recognize.

"Sister Griselda!"

"Xenovia!"

Immediately, the Angel pushed herself out of her chair and strode over to the blue-haired young woman, taking her into a tight hug without a second's hesitation.

And for several seconds, the two stood there, grateful for the opportunity to embrace one another.

Mirana and Asia, meanwhile, looked at Issei.

"I'm guessing you brought her here, Issei?" Mirana asked, a playful grin on her lips.

The brunette simply nodded.

"Issei, you're so kind..." Asia said, her tone adoring despite not having the tiniest clue who the blue-haired young woman was.

Once the two had pulled apart, Griselda laid a hand on Xenovia's shoulder.

"...oh, Xenovia, what am I going to do with you?" she asked, her tone sounding pained.

Xenovia simply looked down at the floor, not having any answer to that.

"Issei?" Mirana said, looking over at her junior Saint. "What's going on here?"

Issei sighed. "Xenovia here was..." He swallowed. "She was excommunicated from the church for finding out about God's death."

The Ace's smile vanished, twisted into a frown. "Oh, dear..."

Asia's expression was one of sympathy; this was no surprise to Issei, given that Asia knew better than any other member of the deck what it was like to have been exiled.

Issei gritted his teeth. "She deserves better than that. Everyone does."

Mirana looked at him, then to Xenovia, then to Griselda, but she said nothing; Asia followed suit.

* * *

After Issei went to the kitchen and fixed both himself and Xenovia a quick breakfast, the four Angels and exiled exorcist sat down at the table, the Jack of Hearts and Xenovia each wolfing down a meal.

As they did, they were hit by a barrage of questions, from the exact details of what had happened during the mission to what Xenovia planned to do in the meantime.

The two only had answers for about half of the questions asked.

At the same time, however, Xenovia asked plenty of her own questions, sparking amusement in Issei. He remembered it had been just a couple of months since he had woken up as an Angel, yet that day seemed far in the past even now.

Two hours flew by without the group even noticing, until all of a sudden an enormous glowing cross appeared at around quarter past nine.

Immediately, all of the Angels were out of their chairs, dropping into a bow as the King of Hearts formed from the cross. Xenovia awkwardly followed suit, imitating the bow as best she could, now utterly terrified to be in the presence of a person she knew instinctively to be one of the Four Great Seraphim.

"Good morning, my dear Saints," Gabriel said, her voice its normal warm, friendly tone. "Ah, Issei. Just who I was looking for. Michael is ready to hear you now. You may all rise."

Issei stood quickly, before nodding. "You wish for me to depart immediately, Lady Gabriel?"

"Indeed I do," she replied. "Good luck, Issei."

"Thank you, my Lady."

Without another word, he vanished into a cross.

Once he had gone, Gabriel looked over her deck and noticed there was an extra, unfamiliar figure among them.

"Ah, and who might you be?"

Xenovia couldn't get her mouth to work, earning amused chuckling from Gabriel. "There's no need to be nervous, dear. I won't bite."

"Xe-Xe-Xe-Xenovi-via..." the blue-haired young woman stammered.

"Ah," Gabriel said, her tone changing to a more neutral one as her smile disappeared.

This nearly made Xenovia empty her breakfast onto the fine carpet. She was sure she had done… _something_ to offend Gabriel, and that she was about to pay dearly for it.

The Seraph's next words, as one might expect, caught her completely off-guard.

"I heard what happened to you from my Jack. I assume he brought you here?"

"Y-Y-Yes..."

Gabriel nodded. "I see. I am truly sorry that this happened to you, Xenovia." Then, her smile started to return. "Tell me, Xenovia, are you or are you not the wielder of Durandal?"

"I… I am..." Xenovia said, unsure of where Gabriel was going with this.

"Excellent. I would assume you wish to have this stroke of misfortune undone?"

"Err… yes… I would, Lady Gabriel… if… if it wouldn't be impossible..."

Xenovia felt a tiny spark of hope run through her at Gabriel's question. If she was willing to aid her…

"Well, I can't give you your place back in the church."

Xenovia's face fell as though she had just had a palette of bricks broken over her skull, and she was simultaneously enraged that the Seraph would seemingly toy with her feelings like that.

"However, if you'd like..." the Seraph said, her smile widening, "I may be able to do something else for you."

* * *

 _And cut._


	38. Laying Things Out

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei's assuming of a cross was done with extreme apprehension. He knew that he had to go through with what he was going to say, and that he wanted to do it besides.

Yet he was also, rather understandably, just as nervous as Xenovia had been about coming to Heaven in the first place.

The Jack of Hearts didn't think Michael would hate him for saying what he was about to; hell, he doubted Michael was even _capable_ of hating a person. But the irrational side of his mind was firing on all cylinders, screaming at him to flee.

With everything he had, he fought it down.

* * *

The instant he appeared in Zebel, he dropped into the expected bow.

The voice that greeted him, however, was not Michael's. It was not the somewhat soft but extremely friendly voice of the leader of Heaven; instead, it was a deep baritone that made Issei feel as if his very bones were being shaken.

"Rise."

As the brunette did so, his eyes came to rest first on Michael, standing a short distance away. Then, they came to rest on the voice's actual speaker.

Standing off to one side, to the back and left of Michael, was another Angel, this one quite the tall specimen among the species. He was easily a head taller than Michael, his black hair combed straight down in a manner similar to Heaven's leader. His face, however, was nowhere near as gentle as the Archangel's, instead being much rougher in its cut. While not harboring malice, the man's eyes made Issei feel as though he were under a microscope, the brunette suddenly feeling quite exposed.

"So, you are Issei Hyoudou, my sister's Jack?" came his voice again.

"Yes, sir," Issei answered, trying to keep his knees from knocking together.

The man's eyes narrowed for a moment, before returning to their normal state. "I am Uriel, one of the Four Great Seraphim of Heaven. A pleasure to make your acquaintance." The voice was completely dispassionate, free of any positive or negative tones, leaving his feelings on Issei impossible to determine.

This did not help Issei's nervousness in the slightest.

"The pleasure and honor is all mine, Lord Uriel," Issei said, fighting to keep from stammering.

Uriel nodded, before saying a single additional word.

"Michael?"

Heaven's leader nodded and took a half step forward. "I have been told by my sister, your King, that you wish to make a few complaints to me. Speak freely, Issei Hyoudou."

Issei swallowed, blood pounding in his ears. Slowly, very slowly, he took a deep breath, exhaling it just as slowly, tempering his nerves in whatever small way he could.

Then, he began to push the words out of his mouth, each carefully selected, his tone measured, careful and exceedingly deliberate.

"Lord Michael… what I'm about to say isn't about me. You've been better to me than I'd ever believed possible, and I'm thankful for that."

Michael smiled slightly, but was quickly cut off by Uriel. "Get to the point, Issei. Don't try buttering us up."

Issei wanted to give a sharp rebuke to that, but he did not even begin to dare. Instead, he looked Michael in the eyes.

"Lord Michael, I believe you haven't been fair to Xenovia Quarta, Irina Shidou, or Asia Argento."

Michael's smile turned downwards. "What do you mean?"

"Lord Michael, I understand that you weren't about to indulge Kokabiel in his desire for a war. But… sending Xenovia and Irina after him with just a pair of Excalibur swords was a bad idea. I know, they're both pretty skilled exorcists, I'm not denying that. But consider who they were against – a Fallen Angel cadre. They themselves knew who they were up against, so you must have as well."

"Well, Issei..." Michael began to say, before Uriel once more cut someone off.

"Michael, let the boy talk. He's probably got more to say."

Issei took another deep breath. "What I'm saying, Lord Michael, is that Xenovia and Irina never should have been sent after Kokabiel under _any_ circumstance. Even if you gave them a fully fused Excalibur, they still wouldn't have been able to beat him. I know that there are a few exorcists in the church who could defeat Kokabiel, but Xenovia and Irina aren't those people. One of the Brave Saints would have been a better choice."

Michael's face shifted uncomfortably, while Uriel's expression was unreadable.

"And Xenovia?" Issei continued. "She's been exiled by the church, all because Kokabiel told her that God is dead. She didn't deserve to be treated that way. She didn't do anything wrong. And Irina knows about God's death, too, and yet she hasn't been exiled. She's potentially on her way to sainthood. How is that at all fair? Besides that, she's the current wielder of Durandal. I must say, sir, it seems... reckless to cast that person out. She might wind up holding a grudge and decide to retaliate against the church."

Issei's heart was trying to burst through his ribs as his mouth tried to keep from stammering his next words. He was sure this was the shakiest part of his argument, and was hoping that it could stand up to some scrutiny.

"As for Asia… yes, she's been made a Brave Saint. I get that. But then again, she was only made a Brave Saint _after_ she had been excommunicated and humiliated by the church, which had basically exploited her since she was little because of her Sacred Gear. And even then, she was nearly murdered by Fallen Angels for that same Sacred Gear. That I happened to intervene was just dumb luck. She never should have been put in that situation."

Michael nodded slowly, his eyes sad. "And your second complaint, Issei?"

The brunette's jaw clenched, trying not to let a hint of anger come through his voice; even though he'd felt nothing upon her death, he still could not think of Raynare without hearing her sneering voice the night she had killed him.

"You never should have let that Fallen Angel live. Not after what she tried to do to Asia."

Both Seraphs took note of Issei very noticeably leaving out any mention of what Raynare had done to _him_.

"She wound up as Kokabiel's minion, and she's the one who wound up using the swords. According to Rias Gremory's Knight, she killed the priest you sent to Kuoh to scout things out. She's the one who hurt Irina."

His voice became slightly more aggressive at the last sentence, something both Seraphs also noticed.

"And if you're wondering, she's dead now. I killed her, but I shouldn't have had to. She never should have been set free. All of the Brave Saints I talked to agreed with me on that, and so did my King."

Issei took yet another deep breath, feeling some release; while he had no idea what the reactions of the two Seraphs would be, at least the saying was over and done with. The words were now out in the open, where he could not second-guess saying them.

"I am finished, Lord Michael."

Michael sighed, but Uriel was the one to speak.

"May I, Michael?"

Heaven's leader nodded, a gesture which Uriel returned.

"Well, to start, Issei, I want to congratulate you on having the nerve to come up here and say what you did. I'll even say that I agree with a lot of what you have said."

His tone hardened an almost imperceptible degree.

"However, Issei Hyoudou, in the interest of the "fairness" you so advocate, allow me to answer some of your complaints."

Uriel moved off the wall and took a few steps over towards Issei, coming to a stop next to Michael.

"As far as your point about the exorcists goes, I agree. Sending those two young ladies after a leader-class Fallen Angel could be very generously described as a "poor decision"." As he said this, he shot a disapproving look at Michael, whose eyes looked downwards. A moment later, Uriel's eyes returned to Issei.

"However, Issei, your point about the Brave Saints is completely incorrect. We _did_ send a Brave Saint after Kokabiel the moment he chose to get involved. That Brave Saint is standing right in front of us, and he mishandled the situation as well."

Uriel put his hand up as Issei's mouth started to move, instinct working to put up a verbal defense. "We have heard you without interruption, Issei. Now you will hear me. As I was saying, Issei, you mishandled the situation. While you did an excellent job dealing with the Devils and put up a surprisingly good fight against Kokabiel, given the circumstances, you missed something quite critical. Do you know what that is?"

Issei nodded. "I failed to gather reinforcements when I had the chance."

Raphael returned the nod. "When you brought the injured exorcist here, you met with one of the Seraphim. If you had given him _thirty seconds_ of explanation, Raphael likely would have sent his entire deck along with you, and this young woman's heartache might have been averted. By running off without telling us anything useful, you're partly at fault for that as well."

The brunette affirmed his understanding of this, not mentioning that Gabriel had already torn into him for this.

"In addition to that, Issei… you're not really being fair to Michael, ironically. While I do agree that that Fallen Angel didn't deserve a second chance, you have to understand Michael's view. This Fallen Angel, from what I've been told, was missing most of one hand and had none of her powers or lifespan. One could put forward a decent argument that she was not even worth killing at that point. After all, Issei, for all our power… we aren't clairvoyant. We didn't know that Kokabiel was going to pull his little stunt."

Uriel sighed. "And of course, Issei, one has to consider the implications of _why_ Asia Argento and Xenovia Quarta were exiled. You must know how rocky things are for Heaven with God dead, and how damaging it would be to Heaven to lose the faith of humans. Having a Saint heal a Devil might affect that, and as much as I wish to believe the best of her, the secrets of humans don't tend to stay that way.

The Seraph nodded. "You may respond."

Issei took another breath, his mind racing to come up with a counterargument, drawing on his reading of the Bible to do so.

"Lord Uriel, Lord Michael, I understand that. But at least with regards to Asia… well, you could easily spin that the other way. Instead of saying that she's a sinner because she has the ability to heal a Devil… use at as proof of God's benevolence or something. Say that he loves everyone so much that he allowed his healing-based Sacred Gears to work on anyone, because he didn't want to see anyone suffer. From what I've heard from the Seraphs, that's not far off from how he actually was..."

Michael and Uriel looked at one another, a flicker of amusement shooting through the latter's eyes. Issei, of course, could not see _that_ detail as he continued.

"As far as Xenovia, she's a more complicated situation, but… really, it's a moot point, because God's not dead at all."

Michael looked at Issei, incredulous. "What are you saying, Issei?"

Uriel just chuckled, and Issei suddenly realized the Seraph knew exactly where Issei was going with this argument.

After another deep breath to try and steel his crumbling nerves, Issei kept going.

"I'm saying, Lord Michael, that God can't die. It's impossible, because God isn't a person. It's a title. You said it yourself, that first time you were training me with fire magic – you're currently acting as God. God's just the title granted to whoever's at the center of Heaven's system, and right now, that's you, because the original being who bore that title died. Heck, you put _me_ at the center of the system, and I become God."

Issei put his hands up as Uriel chuckled once more. "Terrible idea, of course, and unless I'm literally the last Angel in Heaven, don't ever do it for any reason, but the point stands. Technically, this entire lie is pointless. God is still alive – he's standing right in front of me. Sure, he's not the original one, but he's still God, effectively."

Michael sighed. "You presume much, Jack of Hearts. I am no replacement for my father."

"But you're the closest thing Heaven has to him," Issei countered. "There's no one in Heaven more fit to run the system than you, and that makes you God. Hey, if you're going to lie to the church about the death of the original God, how much of a stretch would it be to switch that lie to instead be about the nature of God? It might save a bit of heartache for future Saints, and it's not like anybody knows about it except higher-ranking players of the Devil, Fallen Angel and Angel factions anyway, along with a few higher-ups of the church."

All were silent for several moments, before Uriel started to chuckle once more.

"Issei Hyoudou. You certainly have laid down quite the interesting case. However..."

The Seraph suddenly spread his wings, all twelve of them glowing brilliantly as a sword formed in his hand.

Issei's heart proceeded to start doing laps around his stomach as it was suddenly pointed directly at his throat.

"You do realize that what you've just said could be described as blasphemy, given that it's technically a violation of the Second Commandment? And that we could easily justify casting you out of Heaven for it?"

Issei's heart stopped.

For all his reading of the Bible, he hadn't even been thinking about one of the most basic elements of the very religion he was supposed to help spearhead.

Issei, for all the things he found wrong with Heaven, did not wish to be cast from it. Even if he did not agree with much of church policy, he still wished to remain as an Angel. He still wanted to be able to come to Heaven, to spend time with his fellow Saints and enjoy their company, to work with them and learn from them.

Griselda, Mirana and Asia… they were practically sisters to him at this point, while Dulio was the best older brother Issei could have ever asked for. Gabriel, his King, was a woman who'd, out of pity, given him a new lease on life, literally and euphemistically.

He also did not want to be separated from Irina. He and his childhood friend had struck up quite a friendship in the last week, and Issei was started to feel twinges of something else as well. But if he was cast from Heaven now, she would be forced to reject him… if she would even have to be forced.

The Jack, however, refused to show any of those fears to Uriel, at least in his mind. Instead, he faced the Seraph's sword without flinching.

Uriel, of course, was rather perceptive, and easily saw the fear hidden behind the teenager's brown eyes. Yet he still felt some respect for his sister's Jack despite that, simply for not immediately cracking. In truth, he had no intention of swinging the sword or indeed even touching Issei Hyoudou, nor of casting him from Heaven.

Issei, for his part, kept his face unemotional, and, with all the remaining bit of strength his fried nerves could muster, his tone as well.

"And if you'd throw me out of Heaven because I'm willing to voice a view that isn't popular, even if it's true… then you're not worth following anyway."

Even as the words came out, Issei knew they had to sound halfhearted, which came through clearly to both Michael and Uriel. Both Seraphs could tell that whatever he might say, Issei wanted desperately to keep his place in Heaven.

Uriel shrugged. "Well, then, Issei… as you'd have it."

Issei's face cracked, showing a tiny sliver of fear, but he refused to allow himself to start begging.

As he did so, Uriel started to laugh, leaving Issei quite confused. The laughter started low, before slowly escalating into a bellowing, uproarious tone, deep enough that it seemed to shake Issei's very soul.

Then, as suddenly as it had formed, the sword disappeared, as did Uriel's wings, before the Seraph turned to Michael, a half-smile on his face.

"He's rough, Michael, but he passes."

Michael seemed to breathe a slight sigh of relief, before Issei jumped on this, his words now jumbled. "Wait, passes? I… wait, what…?"

Uriel turned to look at him, that smile widening even more. "Issei Hyoudou, do you remember the description you were given of that little "evaluation" by my sister? The first part?"

Issei's mind instantly jumped back to when Gabriel had appeared in his room to tell him of that little event.

"Wait… the interview?"

Uriel nodded. "Indeed."

Issei blinked once.

Then a second time.

"...that was the interview, wasn't it?"

Another nod.

"I… I didn't even know! I wasn't ready for-"

"Obviously," Uriel said, shrugging. "That was the entire point. What better interview than one where the client isn't aware they're being evaluated?"

Issei's head started jerking from left to right, scanning the room, trying desperately to sense any other presences.

"Issei..." Michael said, his tone concerned, "...what are you doing?"

"Was this whole thing broadcast to all the Seraphs and higher-ranking Angels?" Issei demanded. "Am I on camera right now for all of Heaven to laugh at?!"

Uriel chuckled once more. "No, Issei. Not at all. To be honest with you, I was the only one who was pushing for this interview to begin with, and I would have been the one to conduct it, anyway. You may have noticed that _I_ did most of the talking. Because I am, apparently, the only Seraph who values the ability of our Saints to resolve problems without picking up a sword." He shot a teasing glance at Michael.

Michael just gave a _humph_ and looked away.

Issei, on the other hand, wasn't quite finished.

"So," Issei said, his voice a much colder tone than before, "did any of what I said actually get taken seriously?"

Uriel's smile disappeared, his response quite reassuring to the Jack of Hearts. "Yes, Issei, your words have been heard." He looked at Michael once more. "And whatever my thoughts and feelings are on some of his points, I must firmly come down on his side. You have made errors, Michael, and there are several things you must do to rectify them."

"Such as?" Michael replied, his tone now quiet and accepting.

"I'll let Issei give his thoughts first, to see how reasonable what he asks is," Uriel said.

Both of the Seraph's eyes turned towards Issei, who took a deep breath, trying to recoup his shattered nerves.

"Lord Michael… what I'd ask is that you at least apologize to both Irina and Xenovia for sending them against Kokabiel, and to Asia for letting her suffer the way she did. And beyond that… give Xenovia back her place in the church. _Please_. If you don't do anything else, do that, at least. Swear her to whatever secrecy you need to."

Uriel looked at Issei. "I notice that you haven't once mentioned what this Fallen Angel did to you. You won't ask for anything for yourself?"

Issei shook his head. "I already have my closure, Lord Uriel. I killed that Fallen Angel. There's nothing more to be done about it. And while I don't agree with your reasoning, Lord Michael… I can at least understand it."

The Seraphs chewed on this, before Uriel turned his head to look at Michael once again.

"Well, that's a remarkably fair set of demands, I think. Four things and all quite simple, easily within your power."

Michael nodded slowly. "Issei Hyoudou, I accept your complaints, and I shall do as you have asked. Though, I must ask… where is Xenovia Quarta now?"

Issei looked the leader of Heaven directly in the eyes as he said his next words.

"She's in First Heaven, visiting the Queen of Hearts."

Uriel's face turned back into a grin. "You really have thought ahead, haven't you, Jack of Hearts? Though I'd have to guess that this little demand isn't what you put on the form."

Issei's head shook, then bowed. "If you wish to punish me for that, Lord Uriel, I'll accept whatever you deem appropriate."

Uriel shook his head. "No need. If she really is here to visit the Queen of Hearts, then you haven't actually lied. You just had a secondary motive."

With that, the black-haired Seraph turned and took several steps away from both of them.

Then, he stopped once more.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Issei Hyoudou, I have two small pieces of advice for you."

"Yes, sir?"

Uriel's head half-turned, until it was in profile in Issei's vision. "Stop fighting your Longinus."

Issei blinked. "Sir… I'm afraid I… I don't understand."

Uriel sighed. "Issei, I'm saying you need to stop treating it like it's a secondary thing, to be ignored whenever possible and used as a backup when not. The Boosted Gear, if you put the effort in to master it, could easily be the only weapon you need."

"Lord Uriel, I-"

"I think I can guess why you don't. You want to prove you don't need it and can serve as well as any Saint without it?"

After a moment, Issei nodded slowly.

"Well, Issei," Uriel said, "if that's your thought process, there's someone you should think about any time that crosses your mind."

"Who, sir?"

Uriel chuckled. "Dulio Gesualdo, Michael's Joker. Realize, Issei, that he holds very little skill in any combat method other than his Longinus. And yet he is the only reincarnated Angel to bear ten wings. He is quite intelligent, certainly, but brains alone would never get him to his current standing. Dulio's total mastery of Zenith Tempest is the only weapon he bears, and look at him. That could easily be you, if you put as much effort into your Boosted Gear as you do your other skills."

"Sir, isn't it better to have a variety of skills to work with?"

"Oh, it certainly doesn't hurt, but the Boosted Gear holds numerous secrets. If you can learn to extract those abilities, the additional skills could easily come to play the role the Boosted Gear does now – augments for your Longinus, not the other way around."

Uriel's face pulled into a final grin. "The Longinus is a wonderful gift, Issei. Make use of it."

"And the other bit of advice, sir?"

"Study your Bible some more."

He disappeared towards the Seraph's personal chambers.

* * *

Once his brother had gone, Michael simply pointed downwards.

"Shall we, Issei Hyoudou?"

* * *

Issei realized only when they arrived near the entrance of First Heaven that he hadn't actually specified _where_ in First Heaven Xenovia was. Michael, of course, had not made any assumptions about where they needed to go, and had defaulted to the gate.

And of course, as soon as they landed, every Angel in a one hundred foot radius bowed down.

Issei was legitimately unsure if he should follow suit.

"Rise, everyone," Michael called, his voice easily reaching the ears of every Angel outside at the moment. "Carry on, please."

Once the Angels had done so, Michael turned to Issei.

"Where is Xenvoia, Issei?"

Issei gulped. "Uh… the Hearts building, last time I checked..."

Michael gave a slight smile. "Well then, let us go."

Issei fully expected Michael to assume the shape of a cross at those words, but he did not. Instead, he spread his twelve wings.

His twelve _golden_ wings.

It was not until a few seconds had passed that Issei realized he was staring, and he began to apologize. "My apologies, Lord Michael… just… never seen you with your wings out..." Issei's voice steadily dropped in volume the further along the sentence he got.

Michael's only response was a light chuckle. "I don't get to spread my wings nearly often enough. Would you mind joining me?"

Issei nodded, revealing his four wings. "It would be my honor, Lord Michael."

* * *

The jaunt, of course, was a short one; with the ability to fly, the half-mile walk to the Hearts building from the gate was reduced significantly, being over in less than three minutes.

Issei, however, still greatly enjoyed it, as he always enjoyed it. He'd never admit it for fear of appearing immature but he absolutely loved flying.

Unbeknownst to him, Heaven's leader took a similar giddy joy in flight.

* * *

Upon landing near the building, Michael hid his wings from view without an instant of ceremony, instead simply indicating toward the door.

"After you, Jack of Hearts."

* * *

Steadily, as they walked down the hall, Issei's ears were met by the sound of female voices, laughing and joking.

To his relief, he could hear Xenovia's uncharacteristically joyful voice among them.

Step by step, stride by stride, Issei approached the group of women he could hear, their voices growing louder with every step.

After what felt like an extremely long walk, despite it being no more than fifty feet or so, the Seraph and the Jack rounded the corner, and were confronted by Gabriel, all of her Saints, and Xenovia.

Issei was immediately sent into a shock.

"Ah, Michael," Gabriel said, a hint of a grin tugging at her lips. "And what brings you here?"

"Gabriel, I-" Michael started to say before his eyes fell on Xenovia. Then, he suddenly stopped short, his eyes slightly widening.

Gabriel, in the meantime, casually walked to him and gestured towards Xenovia.

"Are you just going to stand there slack-jawed, or are you going to say hello to my newest Saint?"

From Xenovia's back spread two Angel wings, above her head was a circle of light, and on the back of her right hand was a bright, burning **10**.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _And thus we pass the 100,000 word mark. I couldn't have done it without your tears to fuel me, thank you all so much._


	39. Clearing Things Up

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"I may be able to do something else for you."

Xenovia blinked. "Lady… Gabriel? What do you mean?"

Mirana and Asia, meanwhile, looked at one another, a grin coming across the Ace's face, whilst Griselda looked on, hoping what she thought her King was implying was correct.

Gabriel gave a wave of her hand. "Before I get to that, Xenovia, allow me to ask – what are your plans for the future right now? What do you intend to do now that you no longer are a member of the church?"

Xenovia's heart began to race as she felt fear wash over her. The blue-haired teen was in a panic as she recalled her plan, one that she saw no other option for. She possessed few useful, "real-world" skills beyond her swordsmanship and no way to earn a living, and was painfully aware of both facts. She knew she could not depend on the church for help, and did not want to exploit Issei's charity any further than she already had.

It also didn't take a genius-level intellect to know that her plan was not likely to be well-received by anyone in the room. Xenovia herself was ashamed of it; the idea of going to the Devils, to beg to become an enemy that just a week ago, she'd thought it her holy duty to exterminate, nearly sickened her. The blue-haired exorcist hated the very idea of going to throw herself at Rias' feet, begging to be taken as one of her Evil Pieces, and that was if the Angels did not simply kill her where she stood.

Beyond either thought, however, there was the obvious fact that Gabriel was a Seraph, a millennia-old creature with experience far beyond the teenage exorcists' comprehension. Fooling her would be difficult, if not outright impossible, and that was before she factored in Griselda, Mirana and the younger Angel in the room. Xenovia remembered the one time she'd ever attempted to lie to Griselda, over a stolen snack, and how quickly Griselda had figured out she was lying just by the blue-haired exorcist's face.

So, with no good options facing her, Xenovia simply gave the Seraph the truth.

"Lady Gabriel… I was thinking of… going to Rias Gremory… one of the Devils of Kuoh… perhaps she might take me as part of her peerage…?"

Xenovia met Griselda's eyes as she said this, and looked away almost immediately.

She did not have it in her to stare through the hurt in Griselda's eyes.

Gabriel, for her part, simply nodded, humming. "I see. Is this motivated by a simple lack of options? Or have your beliefs collapsed with your knowledge of the death of God?"

Xenovia blinked, looking at Gabriel as a tear formed, trying to force back that painful memory. "You-you know about that?"

"Indeed, I do," Gabriel said, nodding once again. "I am aware of the details of the incident between yourselves, the peerages of Rias Gremory and Sona Sitri, and my Jack. Issei _did_ write the report, after all. I also doubt that it is mere coincidence that he happened to bring you here the day he was to go make his complaints to my brother."

Xenovia took a sharp breath. "…complaints?"

Gabriel smiled. "From what he told me yesterday, he intends to ask that you be given back your place in the church, and perhaps extract an apology for what he indirectly allowed to happen to you."

Mirana took a sharp breath and cut in before Xenovia could respond. "Lady Gabriel… you _let_ him do that? I know that Issei tries to be optimistic and was desperate to fix the situation, but trying to do what he's doing here might cost him his place in Heaven!"

Gabriel looked to her Ace and shook her head. "I doubt it. Do you remember that examination of his abilities that Uriel had insisted upon?"

Mirana frowned. "I don't see what that has to do with…" She blinked, before her frown began to shift into a smile. "He's doing it right now, isn't he?"

Gabriel nodded, grinning once more. "And even if Michael thought to cast him out for it… well, he'd be arguing against me, Uriel and Raphael, and I doubt my brother will be considering removing my Jack from Heaven just for complaining to him."

Mirana, Griselda and Asia all nodded. Xenovia, meanwhile, was looking at the King of Hearts in total confusion.

"Lady Gabriel?" Xenovia said. "I don't mean to offend, but… I do not understand. My belief in God's word has not faltered, but… it frightens me to know that knowledge of his death has cost my place in the church."

Gabriel chuckled. "Xenovia, what if I told you I wouldn't _need_ to give you back your place in the church if you accept my offer?"

Xenovia swallowed and did not respond.

"What if I told you I could, with one action, render it such that you outrank the Pope?"

Xenovia's mouth dropped open.

"What if I told you that I could, should you accept my offer, grant you a lifespan nearly beyond measure?"

Xenovia snapped her jaw shut, before attempting to reply. "Lady Gabriel, I don't- "

"Lady Gabriel," Mirana cut in, "are you going to get to the point where you offer to make her a Brave Saint sometime today?"

Xenovia gasped, while Gabriel just gave a grumpy look to her Ace. "Well, now that you've ruined the suspense, I suppose I have no choice."

The blonde-haired Saint shrugged. "My pleasure. I don't think Xenovia would've been able to take any more tension, anyway." She tossed a teasing grin Xenovia's way.

Xenovia did not notice, on account of her jaw making sweet love to the floor.

Gabriel gave a sigh that was simultaneously annoyed and amused, before turning to face Xenovia once more. Spreading her twelve wings, she began to speak as she pulled the familiar box from within her robes.

"Xenovia Quarta. I, Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphim of Heaven, wish to extend the offer of reincarnation as a Brave Saint of Heaven unto you. You have faithfully served the church, living and battling for our God's teachings only to be cast out for unfair reasons. I consider it only just to reward your lifetime of service, your dedication and your purity of heart with the highest honors I may bestow." She withdrew a card from the box and presented it to the seventeen-year old former exorcist.

"If, of course, you would have me as your King."

* * *

Xenovia began to hyperventilate, not having been even slightly mentally prepared for this possibility. She had been concerned that Gabriel would attempt to remove her from Heaven by force when she arrived; instead, that same Seraph was offering her a place as a Saint?

The blue-haired exorcist looked back over the other three Saints. Her swordmaster from her time in the church. Her swordmaster's friend, whom she'd met several times in the past year. The young maiden named Asia, who not two weeks ago Xenovia had freely called a witch. The one who had gone through this exact same tribulation and gave Xenovia reason to believe the offer was not any form of sick joke.

Each gave her an encouraging smile, and Xenovia could see the hope in all three of their eyes that she would accept the offer.

For several seconds, however, Xenovia could not even begin to figure out how to respond, and Gabriel filled in the silence.

"Is something wrong, Xenovia?" the Seraph asked, tipping her head to one side. "I will not be offended if you should refuse."

Those words snapped Xenovia back to reality, and the feelings that welled up within Xenovia at the thought of refusing annihilated any reason to do so.

"Y-Yes! I would! Err… I mean, yes… wait, I mean…" Xenovia stammered, fumbling her words horribly.

"That is a yes, then?" Gabriel said, chuckling.

Xenovia nodded stiffly, not daring to embarrass herself again by speaking wrongly.

Gabriel smiled. "Then please, child, step forward with your arms at your sides."

Xenovia steeled her nerves and obeyed the order.

* * *

After returning the deck to her robes, Gabriel laid her left hand on Xenovia's shoulder, squeezing just tightly enough to ensure she would not collapse in a heap. Then, using her other hand, she pressed the playing card against the blue-haired teen's chest.

Steadily, Xenovia felt it be absorbed into her flesh, but she did not shiver. There was something oddly… pleasant about the sensation, warmth spreading through her as the card melted into her skin.

Then, for the briefest instant, blinding pain exploded through her skull. Her hands clamped her head, and Xenovia was only kept from falling over by Gabriel's arms.

Then, as suddenly as the pain had started, it vanished.

Xenovia felt her shaking legs steady, regaining her balance as she removed her hands from her face.

"Now," Gabriel whispered in her ear, "here's your first task…"

When she had finished her instruction, the Seraph pulled back and looked at Xenovia, a smile on her face. "Easy enough?"

Xenovia nodded once again, before following the Seraph's command.

An instant later, two Angel wings burst from her back.

For a few moments, Xenovia simply stared in awe at her new wings, before she impulsively hugged her new King.

Gabriel was happy to return the gesture.

After several moments, the blue-haired teen broke the hug, before dashing into Griselda's arms, happy tears in both of their eyes.

Mirana grinned as she clapped Xenovia on the back, while Asia applauded.

"And thus, I have my Ten," Gabriel said, satisfaction coming through clearly in her voice. "You'll make a fine addition to the ranks of the Brave Saints, Xenovia Quarta."

"Thank you, Lady Gabriel!" Xenovia cried, overwhelmed with joy at the honor. "Thank you so much!"

Gabriel chuckled. "It's my pleasure, my dear Ten. Your skills as an exorcist and knowledge of the church will serve Heaven well – and that, of course, is without mentioning your compatibility with Durandal."

Xenovia looked up at Griselda at those words, worry in her face. Griselda simply nodded.

Xenovia reluctantly left Griselda's embrace to turn and face her King. Her hands folded in front of her, the newest Angel in Heaven was clearly embarrassed by what she said next.

"Umm… Lady Gabriel… about that… I should probably mention that I haven't fully mastered the Durandal yet…"

Gabriel, to the Ten's relief, simply shrugged. "That's not unexpected. Few can use it, fewer can truly master it – though of course, you now have millennia to work on that."

Xenovia let out a relieved breath, and with the final doubts cleared, Xenovia began to feel a surge of giddiness well up through her.

"This… this is the most wonderful gift I could have ever asked for, Lady Gabriel… I can't put this into words… just!" Xenovia rambled in between giggles and laughs.

Gabriel simply chuckled once more, pleased by her Saint's happiness.

* * *

The ensuing conversation had barely gotten underway, however, when the group of Angels heard the door to the building open.

A few moments later, Issei and Michael had entered the gathering space of the Hearts building.

Issei froze the instant he rounded the corner, while Michael got a few words out before following suit.

"Gabriel, I- "

Then, he stopped cold as well.

Gabriel, meanwhile, simply crossed the space between herself and her brother and patted him on the shoulder, gesturing towards Xenovia, whose wings were still out.

"Are you just going to stand there slack-jawed, or are you going to say hello to my newest Saint?"

* * *

As one might expect, Michael regained his composure after a mere few moments, much more quickly than Issei did. "You must be Xenovia Quarta. Greetings; I am Michael, the current Archangel and leader of Heaven."

Xenovia gulped, nervous once more. "It's an honor, sir."

Michael nodded, smiling, before turning back to Issei. "Somehow, I don't think giving her back her place in the church will be necessary at this point, Issei."

Issei nodded mutely.

"Well, well, well," Gabriel said. "That's quite a surprise, Issei. You actually managed to talk him into it? I'm quite impressed, my dear Jack. No offense intended, but I honestly had low hopes for your success."

"Thank you, Lady Gabriel," Issei said, his tone still thick with surprise.

As soon as Xenovia had recovered from the shock of meeting Heaven's leader, Issei found the blue-haired Saint trying to crush the life out of him.

"Thank you, Issei! For everything!"

"You're welcome, Xenovia..." Issei said, his tone incredibly awkward.

 **"I think you're forgiven by both of them, partner. You can stop beating yourself up now."**

"Ddraig, not a good time!" Issei said, causing every person in the room to look towards the Jack of Hearts. Xenovia even let go of him.

 **"Hence why I spoke up now."**

"Do you get some joy out of annoying me?!"

 **"Do you ask lots of stupid questions?"**

Issei wisely chose to quit while he was behind.

* * *

After Michael stopped chuckling at the dragon's sarcasm, his face turned serious once more. "Now, Issei, I will fulfill your requests."

Issei gulped and stepped back, allowing Michael to face Xenovia directly.

The blue-haired exorcist suddenly felt very tiny beneath Michael's gaze; she had heard tales of his power, but it was one thing to hear about it and quite another to be confronted by the man himself. While the leader of Heaven exuded nothing but kindness in his every word and gesture, he still held a grand and frankly intimidating presence to the newly reincarnated Saint.

Which made his words even more surreal to the Ten of Hearts.

"Xenovia Quarta, I must apologize to you directly. Both for your excommunication and for sending you after Kokabiel to begin with. I did not provide you with sufficient means or information to complete the mission, and then when it nearly ended in catastrophe, you were punished for something neither you nor anyone else could possibly have prevented. I ask only that you might find it within yourself to forgive me."

Xenovia could only say that she would, too consumed by utter shock at Heaven's leader _apologizing_ to her to do anything else. She did not even notice that Michael had moved out of her direct line of sight and now stood before Asia until the Archangel spoke again.

"And to you, Asia Argento, I extend my apologies as well. I was completely wrong in excommunicating you for what amounts to being too kind, and seek your forgiveness as well."

Asia, of course, was quite happy to forgive Michael and move on, though she was secretly quite happy to be told by Heaven's leader, in no uncertain terms, that she was not a heretic.

Michael shut his eyes, a smile crossing his face. "Thank you both, truly. Your forgiveness means more than you might know." He turned and faced Issei. "That only leaves the final number among the three."

Issei nodded, before both he and Michael wordlessly vanished into crosses.

* * *

Irina, as it turned out, had finally been released from her bed full-time (though she was still, to her undisguised chagrin, under observation in case her wounds were aggravated once more). She was seated in one of the lounges, reading a magazine aimed at church exorcists, when Michael and Issei arrived.

Irina had proceeded to immediately bow to Michael, being told to rise an instant later.

"Irina, my dear, how are you?" Michael asked. "Is your recovery progressing?"

"Yes, Lord Michael," Irina said, with none of the bubbly, childish tone Issei had come to expect from her. Instead, there was reverence and formality, with a hint of awe mixed into. "My body has healed swiftly, but the doctors here insist upon retaining me within Fifth Heaven until they are certain I am completely well."

"I see; that is excellent news, Irina," Michael said. "I have news you might take interest in yourself."

"What is that, Lord Michael?"

"Your fellow exorcist, Xenovia Quarta, has joined the ranks of the Brave Saints as Gabriel's Ten."

Irina's mouth fell open, though it remained that way for no more than a moment before she returned to her formal stance. "That is excellent news, Lord Michael. May I inquire as to the reason for her reincarnation being so sudden?"

Michael simply gestured to Issei.

Irina looked to the brunette, curiosity in her eyes as Issei swallowed.

"Well, Irina…" he began. "After I brought you here, I went back to Kuoh… we, uh… wound up fighting Kokabiel. Wish I could say I pulled some crazy stunt and crushed him, but I'd be lying. I got beaten so badly that Lord Raphael ended up having to personally save me. Heck, the only reason Kuoh isn't a smoldering crater right now is because the White Dragon Emperor got involved."

Irina gasped. "Your fated rival?"

Issei nodded. "Honestly, I think that whole "fated to fight" thing is total crap, but as I was saying, he came in and stomped Kokabiel in about ten seconds. Anyway, while we were fighting, well… Kokabiel spilled the beans. About God, I mean. And the moment Xenovia brought that up to the church, she was excommunicated."

Irina gasped once more. "Then… how'd she get picked to be a Saint? Not that I'm not happy for her and everything, but it seems odd…"

"Well, I brought her to Heaven today, because I was going to ask Lord Michael to undo the excommunication. I didn't and still don't think it was at all fair. He even agreed to do that, but when we got back to the Hearts building… well, let's just say that Lady Gabriel apparently agreed with me."

Irina's eyes widened, before she cracked an enormous smile. "That's wonderful, Issei! Now I have two friends who are Angels!" She giggled, her normal personality coming through very strongly for a moment before she forced herself back to her prior, formal tone.

"Lord Michael?" Issei asked.

Irina looked to the leader of Heaven as the Archangel stepped forwards.

"Irina Shidou, I must extend my apologies for sending you on this mission. I did not arm you sufficiently to deal with the threat Kokabiel presented, and you suffered major injury as a result. I ask only for your forgiveness."

"Of course, Lord Michael," Irina piped up without an instant's hesitation. "I accept your apology completely."

Michael nodded, a slight smile coming to his face. "Thank you, Irina Shidou." The smile widened. "Perhaps you two would like to be alone?"

Without waiting for an answer, he vanished away in the familiar cross, leaving just Irina and Issei in the room together.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Where have I been for the past month?_

 _Would you like the long, complex answer of all the crazy shit I've been doing, or would you like the dull, boring, truthful answer of "I didn't feel like writing this"?_


	40. Her First Task

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

The moment Michael left the two teenagers alone, Irina's formality vanished completely, and she was back to the bubbly young woman Issei knew.

She fixed him with a mischievous smile. "Well then, since Xenovia and you are both Angels, I've _gotta_ become a Brave Saint now! It's only fair!"

Issei returned her grin. "Can't let us beat you, right?"

Irina shook her head, her pigtails bouncing as she did so. "Never! I'll become an Angel just like you guys and I'll become a hero like we always said we would be when we were kids!"

Issei chuckled. "You haven't changed a bit since you left, Irina. You remember that promise we once made to attack Santa?"

Irina simply cracked her knuckles and squinted, evidently trying to appear like one of the stoic movie protagonists they had so loved as children.

"I'll take that as a yes," Issei said, trying desperately not to burst into laughter at the look on Irina's face. "Careful now, you'll terrify Asia if she sees you looking like that!"

At that, Irina suddenly frowned. "Asia?"

"Asia," Issei said, confused at her sudden shift of mood. "Asia Argento? The Nine of Hearts?"

Irina's eyes widened in incredulity. "How did that witch get selected as a Brave Saint?!" she shrieked, her sudden increase in volume leaving Issei startled and drawing the attention of the few Angels who had entered the room in the meantime.

Almost immediately, Issei felt anger begin to boil in his blood. To hear Irina speak of his fellow Saint and friend in such a manner swelled his rage anew.

But he did not lash out.

Instead, he took a deep breath, and forced his next words to come out in a calm, controlled tone.

"She was selected as a Brave Saint because the Seraphs decided to offer it to her. The Four Great Seraphim recognize her as a worthy Saint, as does the deck of Lady Gabriel and every other Brave Saint I've bothered to ask. Do _not_ call her a "witch" ever again, Irina, for your own sake."

"But… she was _exiled_ …"

Issei shrugged. "I suppose you think Xenovia isn't a worthy Saint, then?"

"Xenovia just found out some information she shouldn't have!" Irina retorted. "Asia Argento healed a Devil! She's a heretic of the worst kind!"

Issei clenched his teeth at that insult, but he refused to let it loose on Irina. "She did only what was expected of her by the church, which was to heal people who came to seek her aid. She just didn't discriminate the way the church wanted her to."

Irina pouted at that. "It still doesn't make sense, though!"

Issei shrugged. "Makes perfect sense, if you ask me. Lady Gabriel offered her reincarnation as a Saint because she thought Asia met the requirements and deserved the chance. That's all there is to it, and if you don't like it, you can take it up with Lady Gabriel. And I must say, she deserved the offer more than I ever did."

Irina bit her lip as she was reminded that her best friend had not been a follower of God's teachings when he was reincarnated. Deep in her own thoughts, she failed to respond to Issei's words.

"So, Irina," Issei said, attempting to change the subject, "how much longer you think you have here?"

Irina's focus, naturally, immediately jumped to the question, and she began ranting about how much she hated being cooped up, failing to answer what Issei had asked but accomplishing his goal nonetheless.

He was later informed by one of the Angels there that the staff were just as eager to release her as she was to leave.

* * *

When Issei returned to First Heaven after an hour or so of speaking with Irina, he was happier than he had been for quite some time.

Irina had accepted his apology to her almost immediately, and things had gone smoothly from there. Once he returned to the Hearts building, he'd been looking forward to talking more with Xenovia.

When he arrived there, however, and started down the corridor leading into the central hall, Issei was met with only silence.

As he entered the chamber where Gabriel's Brave Saints gathered, he saw why – save for Mirana, it was completely empty. And when the Ace of Hearts noticed him, she gave him an extremely mischievous grin.

"Hello, Issei," Mirana said, her tone amused. "Come sit with me for a moment, won't you?" Her hand indicated to the seat across from her.

"Okay, what's going on?" Issei replied as he sat, not even pretending to indulge the blonde-haired Ace.

"Why, whatever do you mean?" the young woman asked with false innocence.

"You've got _that_ look on your face," Issei said dryly, resting his cheek on his palm. "What awful thing are you just waiting to see my reaction to?"

"Oh, there's what I've been told to _tell_ you, and then there's what I'd like to do," Mirana replied, the grin getting wider.

"I get the feeling I'm going to regret asking, but what's the latter?"

The grin grew ever larger with every word she said. "It's so _very_ hot in here. Tell me, you wouldn't mind if I, say…" She reached around behind her own back. "…stripped this stuffy top off?"

Issei turned redder than a ripe strawberry, eliciting a giggle from Mirana. "I'd… ask that you go to your own room first."

"Oh, come now, Issei," she said, mock exasperation mixed with humor lacing her tone. "What's the harm? You'd just have a young woman dressed in only her undergarments sitting across the table. That should be an easy temptation for an Angel to resist, right?"

"Your wings are probably flickering right now."

Mirana shrugged, before proceeding to disprove him by showing him her wings for a moment.

Issei simply buried his face in his hands. "Okay, you win. I get it, I'd probably fall just from seeing you that way. Thanks. What news did you have for me?"

For several seconds, there was silence, Issei rendered unable to see by his own palms. Then, he felt a pair of supple palms grasp his shoulders and begin giving them a pleasant massage, before two very soft objects pressed against his back.

When Issei looked up, even redder than before, he was met by Mirana's face. Her countenance was the picture of innocence, even as she massaged his sore shoulders and pressed her breasts against his back.

"M-Mirana," Issei gasped, practically able to _feel_ his wings flickering, "p-please stop… I'm trying to keep my thoughts clean, here!"

"Hmm?" Mirana asked as her face turned into an expression of hurt. "What, do you not _like_ this?" Her hands began to squeeze with a little more intensity. "And you were staring at my chest anyway... obviously you want to know what they feel like, so I'm just giving you what you want."

"Mirana," Issei stammered, thoroughly embarrassed by the fact that the Ace was defeating his will this easily. "I-I appreciate the thought, but – "

" _Mirana_."

Never had Issei been quite so happy to hear the voice of an angry Griselda echoing through the room.

" _Yes_?" Mirana asked, her tone innocent once more. Her motions did not stop, however, and Issei couldn't suppress a slight moan.

"Remove your hands from Issei, right now."

Mirana turned back to look at Griselda. "Aww, I was just giving my junior Saint a little shoulder massage. Can't a Saint try to make another feel good after a long day?"

"Oh, so you are _not_ teasing a boy who already struggles to keep his thoughts pure and free of sin?" Griselda asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Can't it be both?" Mirana asked as the intensity upped yet again, causing another low moan to leave Issei's mouth.

"Mirana, you will remove your hands from Issei immediately, or I will come over there and forcibly separate you two. And when I have, Lady Gabriel will hear about this."

Mirana frowned, before sighing dramatically. "Alright, then, if that's how you want it." Slowly, the motions stopped and the Ace of Hearts pulled herself away from Issei.

Just when Issei thought he was in the clear, though, he suddenly felt his head tugged slightly to one side.

An instant later, he was treated to Mirana lightly kissing him on the cheek.

"Mirana!" Griselda screamed as Issei hastily checked that his wings were still white.

For her part, Mirana simply giggled and began to casually stroll away. "Thanks for your time, Issei," she said. "And you're welcome."

With that, she vanished towards her own room, leaving Issei bright red and Griselda fuming.

* * *

"Why does she do that?" Issei asked Griselda helplessly. "How doesn't it make her fall?"

Griselda had immediately taken the place Mirana had been sitting at, and promptly covered her face with one hand.

"She does it, Issei," Griselda sighed, "because she knows that, whether you want to or not, you _will_ react. She knows you are a young man who has some… _lecherous_ tendencies, no matter how much he tries to pretend otherwise."

Issei stared off to the side, embarrassed.

"If we are being honest, Issei, we both know you quite enjoyed her attention. Do not even try to claim otherwise; I heard those little moans. She knows how easy you are to tease, and she also knows exactly how far she can push things without putting either of you in danger of falling."

Issei just shrank a bit in his chair.

"As to why she does not fall," Griselda continued, "that is quite simple. Her thoughts and intents were no doubt completely chaste the entire time. She likely took no pleasure in touching you beyond _your_ reaction. Ergo, to the system, there was nothing sexual about her actions, only in your _reaction_ to it. And of course, if you _did_ try to escalate things… well, it would not end well for you, I can tell you that."

"Heaven's system seems to have some loopholes in it," Issei said, his voice deadpan.

"You would be correct in that." Griselda shook her head. "If it means anything to you, Issei, realize that Mirana teases everyone. Not always or even usually with her body, no, but she is an expert at getting a reaction out of others. Chief among her victims is myself. And of course, do not mistake that for disliking you or wishing you harm; if it came to it, she would fight with everything she had to protect you or any other Angel." Griselda cracked a smile. "She likes you quite a bit, as a matter of fact. Hence why she is willing to be this bold."

Issei groaned. "So, I've got more incidents like this to look forward to?"

Griselda shrugged, and her tone became dry. "Essentially."

Another, much louder groan escaped Issei.

When he had finished, Griselda changed the subject.

"Now then, Issei, did Mirana get around to telling you what she was supposed to before she began making a small fool of you?"

Issei shook his head, leaving Griselda to sigh.

"Well then, Issei, I shall inform you. Lady Gabriel is delegating you on your first major contact with the church."

Issei's eyes widened.

"Now, now," Griselda said, attempting to calm him. "Her instruction is not complex or difficult. All she asks that you do is return the cores of the four Excalibur swords to the church within the Vatican. In fact, I returned…" Griselda reached into her robes, extracting an envelope and a picture, both of which she laid on the table between them. "…to give you these."

She tapped the picture. "This is the building you will be looking for. It is both a church unto itself and the dwelling of some of the highest-ranking church officials, who must be presented with the cores." The Queen of Hearts then indicated the letter. "Present this to the guards outside, if they should so question you. That will guarantee you entry."

"And I suppose I need to keep my identity quiet?" Issei asked, rather nervous at these developments. "Err, the fact that I'm an Angel, that is?"

"Not if you do not wish to," Griselda replied, shaking her head. "It is the Vatican, Issei. The people there almost all exorcists or church officials, and the population is universally aware of our existence. If you wish to spread your wings, you may do that."

Issei almost immediately decided that he would _not_ be doing that. He did not want potentially hundreds of people bowing to him and begging him for guidance and forgiveness.

"Okay, then. Who am I looking for, exactly?"

"Ewald Cristaldi," Griselda said. "Do you remember who that is?"

Issei bit his lip as he thought back over the lessons Dulio had given him. "Eminence Cardinal… Deacon, wasn't it? Fourth-highest ranking member of the church?" Then, it clicked, and Issei snapped his fingers. "Right, he trained Dulio, didn't he?"

"Among many others," Griselda said, nodding. "He is also the former wielder of several Excalibur fragments, so one can understand why he would take a personal interest in being presented with those cores."

Issei nodded, trying to keep himself calm and control his racing heart. "Okay, then… so, why does Lady Gabriel want _me_ to do this?"

"Simply put, Issei," Griselda said, smiling wryly, "Irina has not yet been released from Heaven's medical facilities, while Xenovia is currently learning to utilize her abilities as a newly-reincarnated Angel. You are the only one of the three who was directly involved in the incident who is not currently indisposed."

Somehow, Issei was not convinced.

 _Yeah, right. More like she's annoyed that I didn't get reinforcements and wants me to do things right this time…_

Issei shook his head, trying to dislodge the thought. "Okay, then, _when_ does Lady Gabriel want me to do this?"

Griselda's smile widened, and Issei gulped.

"So, I suppose I should go get changed, then?"

* * *

Issei opened the closet in his room.

As he removed the vestments from within, he took the time to look them over, letting out a slow breath as he did so.

 _Takes me back..._

It hadn't even been three months since the first and last time he had worn them, yet the vestments felt positively ancient in his hands, a relic of a period long since past.

 **"Nervous, Issei?"**

The brunette swallowed. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't."

Ddraig chuckled. **"Well, it could be worse. You're just there to return some cores, assuming nothing goes wrong."**

"So "plan for the End Times to start while I'm there" is what you're saying?"

 **"...basically."**

"You're not helping."

 **"You're not wrong."**

The brunette shook his head as went to the door, locked it, and began changing.

* * *

After he had finished, Issei spent several minutes checking himself over in the mirror, trying to make sure his clothes were absolutely perfect.

And of course, as soon as he returned to the main hall to collect the letter and photograph, Griselda immediately began scolding him.

"Issei Hyoudou! I cannot by any rights send you to the Vatican looking like that!"

A few seconds later, Griselda was swooping around him, correcting tiny imperfections Issei was certain no one would have noticed.

* * *

After several minutes, Griselda finally finished her fortunately-not-literal nitpicking session.

"Much better, don't you agree?"

Looking down at himself, Issei still could not see any real difference.

"Yes, Griselda. Much better. Thank you for correcting me."

Issei did not even bother trying to fake sincerity with his words as he picked up the letter and photograph from the table.

Looking over the photo, he nodded. "Eminence Cardinal Deacon Ewald Cristaldi, right?"

"Correct."

Issei took another deep breath. "What's the location, exactly?"

Griselda rolled her eyes, before taking the photograph from him and flipping it over. On the back of the paper, the information he was looking for was written quite plainly.

"Thanks. I'll be off, then... wonder where Xenovia left those cores..."

"She mentioned that she left them in a briefcase in the spare room," Griselda supplied.

"Thanks again."

* * *

 _And cut._


	41. Delivery Service

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

After waiting several hours to account for the time zone difference between his home and the Vatican, Issei returned to his house to collect the cores.

It did not take Issei long to find the briefcase once he had.

* * *

The black leather case was seated upon the bed, Xenovia evidently having kept the cores with her. It was no surprise, really; she probably had not wanted them to fall into the hands of anyone else, but had not thought to bring them with her when she had accompanied him to Heaven that morning. Perhaps she had simply forgotten about them, or had intended to give them to him later. Issei couldn't be sure.

As he clicked it open to check that all four cores were there, Issei was washed in holy aura. Pushing the case open, he let out a slow breath at the sight of the four pieces of metal that rested within the enchanted velvet.

The shards, for an instant, released a glow so slight it was nearly imperceptible to even his supernatural vision. Then, they faded once more, though the aura did not.

Issei smiled almost unconsciously; the feeling of being near four holy objects of such power was euphoric. He supposed that was also no surprise; after all, an Angel would naturally find such an aura very pleasant. Issei could only imagine what it made Devils feel.

After a few moments, Issei closed the briefcase and re-fastened the latches. Then, taking a deep breath, he picked up the photograph and letter with one hand and the briefcase in the other. Careful to not drop the letter as he did so, he looked over the coordinates on the back of the photo.

A few seconds later, he vanished into a cross.

* * *

When the cross re-formed, Issei found himself standing beneath a morning sky, speckled with clouds. The still-rising sun beamed down, and the vestments Issei wore suddenly felt quite warm.

Looking around, Issei saw that he was in a small alleyway. With no one else around, his sudden appearance had gone completely unnoticed.

Issei took another deep breath, fighting to remain in total control of himself. He swallowed, then flipped the picture back to the building.

* * *

As soon as he stepped out of the alley, Issei looked around to find _several_ buildings, none of which remotely resembled the one he was looking for. And as he looked around further, he realized he had no idea where to even start looking.

It took about five seconds for Issei to do the obvious and start looking around – not for the building, but for other people.

That, at least, was easy enough.

Almost immediately, he accosted a woman dressed in a veil, similar to the one worn by Griselda, and showed her the picture. He assumed he was a nun, though he was not entirely sure.

"Would you happen to know where this building is?"

After a moment of looking at the picture, the woman nodded.

"Yes, I do," she said, her voice calm and gentle. It reminded him of Asia, though he could see just from a glance that the two were in no way related. "It's not far from here. Though…" She smiled slightly. "It's rather odd that you don't know where it is – it _is_ one of the more famous buildings for exorcists in Vatican City. Have you never been here?"

"No. And more to the point, I'm not an exorcist."

The woman tipped her head to one side. "Then what _is_ your role?"

Issei grinned. "Well, I'm in service to the church. Same as you, I assume."

The woman nodded. "Are you simply sent to take care of different tasks for your branch?"

Issei nodded back. "Something like that."

The veiled woman chuckled. "All right, if you wish to be vague and mysterious, I shall accede. Here is where you need to go…"

* * *

Once Issei was on his way, the nun spent a few moments wondering about him.

 _He is not an exorcist and has never been to the Vatican, and yet he wears_ _ **those**_ _robes?_

The woman, contrary to Issei's assumption, was an exorcist herself, and found something rather off about the behavior of the brunette young man.

Issei did not know it, but the vestments he wore marked him as a high-ranking member of the church. Yet his casual demeanor and obvious avoidance of using any title seemed to indicate the opposite to her, as though he was, at most, a fresh-faced recruit.

 _Could he be…?_

She shook her head.

 _No, not possible. Even a boy his age selected would be familiar with the church's function… perhaps he stole the robes?_

The female exorcist shook her head again, clearing her mind of the thought. All she had was suspicion, and she knew better than to mistake that for evidence.

And so she walked, and wondered a small bit more about the odd teen with a briefcase.

* * *

For the first few minutes of his walk to the building, Issei was almost able to relax. Simply being outside beneath a bright morning sun, even thousands of miles from home, was an experience that he found to be rather enjoyable, despite the inherent jet-lag of such a venture. To Issei's internal clock, it was mid-afternoon; to the Vatican, it was just barely morning.

Issei personally wondered how the other Saints got on with dealing with this disconnect.

* * *

It was not until he was about halfway there and began to encounter larger groups of people that he began to notice something.

It wasn't anything odd about the architecture. The people, besides all being dressed in religious garb, seemed perfectly normal. Ddraig had not made his presence known in any way that Issei could sense.

For about a minute, the brunette could tell something was off, but for that short period, Issei couldn't for the life of him figure out what it was.

Only when he stopped for a moment to double-check the photograph, then look up, did it hit him.

 _They're staring at me…?_

Almost as soon as Issei had looked up, the smattering of people did their best to _not_ look like they'd been staring at him, but that did not fool the teen for a second.

As Issei wandered closer to his destination, this pattern repeated itself over and over, until he was all but certain that the exorcists, nuns and whoever else had figured out that he was an Angel.

* * *

The Vatican, of course, was not a very large city by any stretch of the imagination, and Issei had little difficulty finding the imposing building.

When he stepped towards it, however, he was immediately stopped by a pair of men standing outside, dressed in priest vestments.

"Halt."

It reminded Issei, quite distinctly, of the guards at the gate of First Heaven, though he wondered which resembled which.

"I have business with the Eminence Cardinal Deacon."

The guard blinked. "I will need greater verification than that, young man."

Unbeknownst to Issei, the guard was quietly sweating bullets as he stared this unknown teenager down. The guard recognized the vestments, but not the face; as such, he had no way of knowing if this boy actually was the high rank that his clothes would suggest.

In response, Issei produced the letter from his coat.

"This should suffice, I think."

The guard took it, opened the envelope, and withdrew the paper. For a few moments after opening it, he said nothing as his eyes scanned it.

Then, the man visibly tensed before folding the letter and handing it back to Issei.

"Right this way, sir."

* * *

Issei was led into a grand hall, in which dozens of nuns and exorcists (Issei could not tell them apart) milled about. Many spoke among themselves, but just as many had their heads bowed in prayer.

A few moments later, the guard indicated him to follow him down another corridor, which emptied out into a courtyard, an enormous gap in the exact center of the rectangular building.

Beneath the morning sun, Issei could see what appeared to be a group of budding exorcists, not even out of their teens, receiving basic combat instruction.

In front of them, correcting their form and giving constructive criticism about their technique, was a middle-aged man with black hair, dressed in vestments similar to Issei's own.

"Your Eminence!" the guard called.

The man, evidently Ewald Cristaldi, looked up, and noticed Issei after a moment. "Ah. Is this the visitor I was told to expect?"

"I believe that is the case, your Eminence."

The man quickly instructed his students to continue practicing for a moment among themselves, before striding over to Issei and the guard.

He nodded at the guard. "You may return to your duties."

A heartbeat later, the guard was gone.

"Eminence Cardinal Deacon Ewald Cristaldi, I presume?" Issei inquired, careful to keep his tone and words formal.

The man stroked his chin as he looked Issei over. "Indeed." He nodded towards the briefcase. "You have something for me?"

Issei nodded as he hefted the briefcase onto one hand, unlatched it, and opened the top to reveal the shards of metal within. "The cores of the stolen Excalibur swords, your Eminence?"

Ewald looked at the shards of blessed metal intently for several seconds each, examining them for any immediate flaws.

When he was satisfied, the Deacon nodded. "Yes, they seem to be in order. But... why are there four of them?"

Issei blinked. "What do you mean?"

Ewald frowned. "Three swords were stolen, yes, but there are four cores here."

Issei's mind snapped back, and he realized Ewald's confusion. "Ah, yes. Irina Shidou's sword was stolen and was fused with the three stolen swords. Breaking the fused Excalibur abomination shattered _her_ sword as well."

To the brunette's surprise, Ewald's eyes narrowed. "And might I ask why she was so careless as to allow her sword to be stolen?"

Issei's eye twitched.

 _I guess Xenovia didn't call_ _ **him**_ _specifically… Seems the clergy were too busy exiling Xenovia to tell Ewald what happened…_

Issei took a slow breath, forcing down even the tiniest hint of anger. "Your Eminence, Irina Shidou was personally attacked by Kokabiel and had her sword stolen by him. It was anything but a matter of carelessness. She never had a chance."

Ewald's expression then shifted once more, to one of concern. "What has become of the young lady, then?"

Issei exhaled slowly. "She is currently in Heaven, receiving treatment for her wounds. She is _not_ dead."

The Jack of Hearts swore he saw the Deacon sigh in relief, before Ewald asked the first question to which Issei had no answer.

"Where, then, is the Excalibur Destruction, the second sword entrusted to those two young women?"

For a moment, Issei did not reply, as his mind raced over his memories. After a point, the first sword Xenovia had been using had simply seemed to disappear, replaced by that beast of a sword called Durandal. And of course, it didn't help that his memories of the battle with Kokabiel were rather hazy. Attacking Kokabiel head-on three times in a row hadn't been one of his better ideas.

"I will have to check with Xenovia Quarta, your Eminence. I, unfortunately, do not know of the sword's location at the current time. I doubt, however, that she would be careless enough to simply lose it. I also would have to doubt that Kuoh's Devils have it in their possession."

Ewald nodded, before narrowing his eyes once more. "You seem rather well-informed, young man. Might I ask why you know as much as you do about this incident? And why you were tasked with returning these cores here?"

Unbeknownst to Issei, Ewald had a very good idea of who Issei was, and was simply trying to bait out the information he would need to confirm it.

Issei, however, _was_ smart enough to see the hook.

"I aided them on their mission. As for why I was asked to return the cores here? I'm nothing more than another one of God's servants, doing what is asked of me, just the same as you. I was instructed by one of the Angels of Heaven to return these cores to the Vatican, and it was my honor to do so."

It wasn't an outright lie, at least.

"And if you are a servant of God, why do you tolerate the presence of Devils within that town?" Ewald asked, his voice growing cold.

Issei shrugged. "Because I wish to refrain from restarting the war and completing Kokabiel's mission for him."

"Devils are an evil that deserve only eradication," Ewald snapped.

The Jack of Hearts felt rage boil within him at those words as he remembered the Holy Sword Project. As he remembered Kiba's recounting of his comrades choking to death. Of the church's callous exile of Xenovia.

Beyond that, Issei remembered how Rias and Sona had looked the other way when he'd organized the raid to save Asia. How they had aided his cover and slightly eased his return to normal schooling. How reasonable they had been about dealing with him and the two exorcists.

But Issei refused to let the anger even be hinted at by his own expression.

Instead, he simply replied, "If it were not for the Devils, your Eminence, we would not have these cores back or have been able to delay Kokabiel. Kuoh would have been leveled and thousands of innocent people would have died. They are the reason _I_ still live."

"Perhaps your mind has been corrupted by them," Ewald growled, slowly drawing a sword. "Perhaps you will find redemption within purgatory…"

Issei's eyes narrowed. "I would not advise you do that, your Eminence."

"And why might that be? Do you fear death?"

Issei snorted at that. "My fear, or lack thereof, of death is irrelevant, your Eminence. What _is_ relevant is whether _you_ fear death."

"Is that a threat?"

Issei let out a humorless chuckle at that question. "Your Eminence, I doubt that striking me down would be well-received by the ranks of Heaven. Least of all by Lady Gabriel."

A quiet anger made itself clear with Ewald's next words. "Do you mean to imply that you are personally affiliated with Lady Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphim of Heaven, in any way, young man?"

"I'll do more than imply."

With that, Issei let his full Angelic form show.

* * *

As soon as Issei spread his wings, Ewald went pale as a ghost.

His students, meanwhile, took notice of the teenage Angel and dropped to their knees in supplication, every one of them trying to look proper, perfect and utterly dignified in the presence of one of the beings who they felt blessed to even catch a glimpse of.

Issei, meanwhile, simply walked by the Deacon and went to address the class.

"On your feet, all of you. Just… go back to what you were doing. Pay no attention to me."

They obeyed the first command without a second's hesitation, but it was obvious by how they arranged themselves that the students wanted a clear view of him.

Issei sighed.

 _I guess it's expected from church kids who aren't even teenagers yet…_

The brunette shook his head and turned to face Ewald.

"Yes, your Eminence, I _do_ have a connection to Lady Gabriel. I am one of her Brave Saints." He raised his right hand, showing the red "J" printed on the back of his palm. "I am ranked as her Jack."

"I-I apologize for my outburst earlier. I acted severely out of line and ask your forgiveness."

Issei shrugged. "Granted. I trust you will have no difficulty re-forging those cores into Holy Swords?"

Ewald nodded mutely.

"Excellent. I shall take my leave, then."

* * *

When the cross that had been the nameless Jack vanished, one of the students Ewald had been instructing sneaked the Deacon a question.

"Your Eminence? Who _was_ that? I mean, besides Lady Gabriel's mysterious Jack… do you know him?"

Ewald shook his head. "No, Amelia, I do not. I have never seen him before today, in the church or anywhere else. I knew that Lady Gabriel had taken a Jack, but that is the extent of my knowledge on him."

The black-haired Deacon gave another shake of his head. "Return to your training."

The student scampered off, but within a day, the entire Vatican had heard of the mysterious "Jack of Hearts".

* * *

" **Well, that was disappointing,"** Ddraig said as Issei passed through the gate of First Heaven and took flight.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Issei asked, a wry smile on his face.

" **I was really looking forward to hearing about how you were defending the last church-held stronghold against the invaders from another dimension and how the Fallen Angels had launched a surprise attack against human governments the world over."**

"…Ddraig, just how _bored_ are you in there?"

" **More than your mind can begin to comprehend."**

Issei smiled, sighing wistfully. "Ewald's face was hilarious at least. Though… I'm sure I'll pay for what I just did later."

" **Worth it, I say. And at least I won't have to hear you talk in that "formal" manner you used before."**

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

" **I'm saying that listening to you try to talk formally is tedious beyond all reckoning, Issei. You're a much better conversationalist when you're relaxed."**

Issei just gave an annoyed grunt at that, not having any replies cooked up, as he landed at the Hearts building.

When he entered the hall, though, the only person there was Mirana.

And she had that same mischievous smile on her face that she had had before.

 _Here we go again…_

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Hmm… maybe I_ _ **should**_ _ship IsseiXMirana._

 _Oh, and I did_ _ **not**_ _make up Ewald's characterization here._


	42. The Rival Combatant

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"Okay, what's with that look?" Issei asked dryly. "No more jokes or teasing."

"Like you don't like it," Mirana replied easily. She motioned to the chair across from her. "Come sit with me, won't you?"

Issei would always claim he did so with reluctance.

"So…" Mirana asked, her grin becoming more mischievous by the second, "how did it go?"

"Well," Issei said, leaning back, "I delivered the cores back to the Vatican successfully. Not much else to say."

"How did the meeting with the Deacon go?" Mirana asked, her expression knowing.

"Well…"

Issei proceeded to lay out _exactly_ what had happened between himself and Ewald, and for a moment afterwards, the Jack of Hearts was sure he was about to receive a sound thrashing.

Then, to his complete surprise, Mirana burst into a fit of giggling.

"Oh… Oh, Issei… why didn't you take a camera with you…?" Mirana complained between laughing breaths. "I… wish I could've been there…"

After she calmed herself down, Mirana sternly warned him to not tell Griselda what he had done. "The Queen of Hearts holds great respect for his Eminence. I personally think he's much too caught in the past, but Griselda still admires him. I suppose it's no surprise, given that he was the man who trained her to be an exorcist. Do _not_ bring up what you did to the Queen of Hearts unless you want your next round of training to be hellish."

Issei nodded, despite being confused what she meant. "What do you mean "caught in the past"? I mean, he regards Devils as evil, but that's the norm for people allied with Heaven, right?"

Mirana shook her head. "Not quite, Issei. Tell me, do you think the Seraphs despise Devils? Do you believe the Brave Saints do?"

The brunette was caught off-guard by these questions. "Well, I mean… the Devils and Fallen Angels killed plenty of their subordinates, and a lot of exorcists lost friends and family to Devils, so…"

Mirana shook her head again. "The Seraphs hold no lingering hatred for either the Devils or Fallen Angels. And one of the qualifications of the Brave Saints is that one _cannot_ hate Devils or Fallen Angels. If the Seraphs held any suspicion that an exorcist did, that exorcist was not offered a card, no matter their capability. In fact, despite being one of the most skilled exorcists of the church, Ewald Cristaldi has basically been blacklisted from being taken as a Brave Saint for that reason exactly." She folded her hands in front of her. "Might I ask… do _you_ hate Devils? Or Fallen Angels, for that matter?"

For a few seconds, Issei's eyes slid to the side. Then, he muttered his answer.

"Just two."

Mirana's head tipped to one side, and she motioned for him to elaborate.

Issei sighed. "I hate Kokabiel for his little stunt. He threatened to level my town just to satisfy his own bloodlust, so you can probably see why I'm not crazy about him. And I think you can guess who the other one is…"

The Ace of Hearts quickly nodded, before moving on. "But you don't hate the others?"

Issei shook his head. "I mean, I'd like to slap Azazel across the face, but that's mostly for sending _her_ to scout me out… and from what he tells me, his orders were totally different from what she did. Pisses me off that he can't seem to keep his subordinates under control, but he seems like a decent guy besides that."

"So your reasons for disliking those two are due to personal grievance? Fair enough, no one says you must like _all_ Fallen Angels or Devils. You simply can't hate them just for being what they are."

Issei nodded as he bit his lip. "So… Mirana… I'm curious about something."

"What's that?"

"What _are_ the requirements to become a Brave Saint? For most people, I mean? I know I'm totally different from most Saints, so I'm probably the exception."

Mirana rested her elbows on the arms of her chair as she steepled her fingertips. "Well, besides that you must not despise Fallen Angels or Devils on principle, you must be a strong follower of God's teachings. That person must give themselves wholly to their faith. It's also commonly accepted that Brave Saints must be highly capable in combat. There are, of course, exceptions, such as Asia." The Ace of Hearts let out a slow breath. "Then, of course, there is the requirement that one must be "pure-hearted". What this means ultimately seems to come down to the individual Seraph."

Mirana smiled at him. "Honestly, Issei, I think you have the second part, if it means anything. You truly are a kind-hearted individual, despite the…" Her mischievous grin began to crawl back across her lips. "…rather lecherous side."

"Yeah, well, you teasing me doesn't help!"

She simply shrugged. "To partly quote James 1:12: "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation." She chuckled. "And as you should know, you have to _indulge_ those desires to fall. And if you were to attempt to take me without my consent… well, you'd make a fine soprano by the time I finished with you."

Issei swallowed and promptly changed the subject. "So, did you have something you needed to tell me?"

Mirana nodded. "Apparently, that evaluation of your combat skills has been scheduled. It'll be this Thursday. Be ready."

Issei simply gulped. "Okay, then…" After forcing down some nervousness, Issei switched subjects yet again. "Hey, is Xenovia around?"

"Why?" Mirana asked, winking at him. "Thinking of going to her for some rather more… sensual comfort?"

Issei very nearly began banging his head on the table. "Talking to you is like walking through a minefield, you know that?" Without giving her a chance to answer, the brunette continued speaking. "No, I was going to ask her what she did with the Excalibur Destruction. It's still… unaccounted for. It wasn't in the room, I know that much."

Mirana gave a wave of her hand, still grinning. "Xenovia returned to your home with the aid of Griselda and retrieved the sword. She intends to return it to the church herself."

Issei's eyes widened. "How'll that be received by the church?"

"She claims that she intends to have her wings spread the entire time. Just to shut up anyone who would claim that she doesn't have the right to be there."

Issei snorted. "And Lady Gabriel's letting her?"

Mirana simply nodded at him.

* * *

Shortly after that little bombshell, Issei wrapped up the conversation, citing a desire to avoid arousing suspicion at home.

Mirana had accepted that without more teasing, at least.

* * *

Issei arrived home in a mostly happy state.

To say it had been a long day would be an understatement. When he'd awoken early that morning, Issei had genuinely been wondering if he was going to have to bunk with Azazel by the end of the day. He'd had no idea how Michael would react to his request.

Instead, Michael had accepted his statements, and Gabriel had taken Xenovia as a Saint besides. Irina and Xenovia both seemed to have forgiven him for what had happened with Kokabiel, if either had even held a grudge.

The slate seemed mostly clean. There was a way forwards.

Now, all he had to worry about was that combat trial.

And as one might expect, Issei quickly started to worry about it.

 _Mirana said to "be ready", but how can I be prepared for an opponent they deliberately don't want me to know about in advance?"_

 **"Get plenty of rest and eat a good breakfast?"**

"Quiet, you."

 **"I was just trying to be helpful."**

"By providing me with advice so generic I could probably find it on a cereal box?"

 **"Hey, they repeat it so much because it's good advice."**

"If you're six, maybe. The real world rarely lets you do that, you know."

 **"Wouldn't know, on account of being sealed into this gauntlet. By the way… did you ever get your missed work from that Devil?"**

Issei's next words would have made Gabriel go white with embarrassment.

* * *

The next three days passed Issei in a blur.

While the Jack of Hearts still did his homework and put effort forward to do well in school, it was more out of inertia than a genuine care for his grades. Ever since he'd become an Angel a few months back, his life was constantly consumed by his dealings with the supernatural, be it formal combat training or any of several things. He'd died and been reborn as an Angel, killed his killer and then nearly died again. He'd traveled to Europe and met with one of the highest ranking members of the Church.

It was rather hard for him to care much about school after all of that.

He saw the Devils occasionally, but he and they kept their distances and swapped few words. Both sides understood that if there was no pressing, immediate need to involve each other with their business, there was no reason to do so.

So the days passed, and before he knew it, it was Thursday.

* * *

Thursday, unlike the prior three days, dragged by.

Every tick of the clock, every period of the day that passed, Issei worried a little bit more. He wondered who or what he'd be fighting, and how it would go. He prepared fifty attack plans, then discarded them all just as quickly.

He knew he shouldn't be this jumpy. Gabriel had made it clear when she'd first mentioned it that there was nothing riding on this battle. Issei stood to lose nothing even if he didn't win. Nothing but his own sinful pride.

But Issei wasn't entirely willing to part with that just yet.

* * *

As Issei walked towards the gates of First Heaven, hand raised and wings spread, his worries worsened. With every step he took towards the central gathering hall, his heart raced just a little faster.

Before he walked through the doors, Issei took several deep breaths, trying to calm his nerves that were attempting to fry themselves.

As he walked into the gathering hall, he quickly took note of Griselda, who was seated at a table with two people he did not recognize from this distance.

Almost immediately, the Queen of Hearts noticed him as well, and ushered him over. Before she could say anything, however, the other young woman seated at the table spoke up.

"Ah, so you're the mysterious Issei Hyoudou, are you?"

She was tall, that was for certain, and dressed somewhat similarly to Griselda; that, however, was where the similarities appeared to end. What little of her hair that Issei could see was a deep maroon, and her face, while still quite beautiful, held little of the stern demeanor that the Jack had come to associate with the Queen of Hearts. Her gaze, however, was not playful, the way Mirana's so often was. Instead, it was simply kind and warm.

It reminded Issei very much of Gabriel.

"Yeah, that's me," Issei replied. "The Jack of Hearts. And what do you mean "mysterious"?"

"Claudia Messalina," the red-haired woman replied. "The Queen of Diamonds. And Issei, you must realize that most of Heaven has only _heard_ about you. Many know your face, yes, but you don't talk much with the rest of us."

"Well, I might have more time for that if I wasn't constantly being trained by a woman who'd have been a fantastic drill sergeant if she wasn't so busy being a Saint."

This earned a slap from Griselda across the back of the head, causing Issei to meekly add that her methods were extremely appreciated, given that they had saved his life several times.

"So," the fourth person suddenly spoke up, his tone oddly aggressive, "you're the "Dragon Saint", huh?"

Issei's gaze wandered over to the last person at the table.

The boy sitting in the chair couldn't have been more than seventeen. He was, from Issei's perspective, about his own height, but his youth was clearly reflected in his face. His skull was adorned by spiked, golden hair, while his eyes burned with enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm for _what_ , Issei wasn't sure.

"Is that what they call me?" Issei asked of the young man.

"That's what a good chunk of Heaven calls you, Issei," Claudia said. "Besides "Jack of Hearts", of course. After all, one of the few things we know for certain about you is that you are the wielder of the Boosted Gear."

"Ddraig's the dragon, not me. I'm just a guy who got lucky at birth."

"Doesn't matter, Hyoudou," the boy cut in. "Anyone with that Longinus bears the title "Red Dragon Emperor", whether they like it or not."

"And I reject that title. You ever read up on the past wielders of the Boosted Gear?"

"What about them?" the teenager demanded.

"A lot of them went _completely freaking crazy_ from wielding it, for one thing."

Issei shuddered slightly as he remember what Ddraig had told him that first week after arriving in Heaven. He remembered the horrors that the Red Dragon Emperor had blithely listed out and attributed to his hosts. The brunette recalled that quite a few became mass murderers, and that was discounting the ones who were killed by their equivalent White Dragon.

"Well, that doesn't mean anything," the teen argued. "You don't get to decide whether or not you bear that title any more than you earned your place as a Saint."

" _Nero._ "

Issei's eyes flicked back to Claudia.

The Queen's face had shifted, in an instant, from warm and almost motherly to cold and authoritative, as had her tone.

" _Apologize_."

"For what? It's true that he didn't earn it. He doesn't deserve the title."

Claudia didn't look cold anymore. Instead, she now appeared utterly _furious_.

The boy, evidently named Nero, wilted as soon as he saw the Queen's face, and proceeded to act much as Issei had after snarking at Griselda. The next thing out of his mouth was a meek apology, though Issei was sure he didn't really mean it.

For his part, Issei hadn't been particularly insulted; over the past couple of months he'd grown to accept that he had not earned his place as a Saint.

"To be fair, Nero, you're not wrong. And I'll spend the next thousand years earning that title if that's what it takes."

Griselda let a small smile come onto her face at those words.

"I'll still wipe the floor with you today!" Nero growled, punching his fist into his own palm to drive home the point.

"Oh, so you're my opponent, are you?" Issei said, trying not to let his nervousness at the whole event show. "Bring it, Nero… uh… what's your last name?"

"Raimondi. Nero Raimondi, _Ace_ of Diamonds."

Issei nodded appreciatively as a half-grin creased his lips. "Well then, Nero, I look forward to stomping you in front of your own King."

The brunette felt that the second slap he got from Griselda was worth it.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Nero has been described as a "boy priest", thus I'm going with the idea that he's still a teenager. He's also described as hot-blooded, so it doesn't seem unlikely that he'd be one of the few Saints who takes issue with Issei being reincarnated in violation of the normal rules. Griselda doesn't speak up to defend Issei because Claudia beats her to it. Good day._


	43. Dance of Blades

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"Well," Claudia said, "I suppose I should inform the Seraphs that you've arrived _before_ you and Nero rip each other apart, then?"

Issei shrugged, while Nero continued to glare at him. "I suppose we can wait until we get to the arena." The brunette looked at the Ace of Diamonds. "Unless you want to just throw down right here?"

For an instant, the look on Nero's face left Issei sure that the teen was going to take him up on that.

But then, he pushed himself back. "No. I'll wait until we're out in the arena before I bring you to your knees."

Claudia simply sighed as she assumed the familiar form of the cross, the argument between the two teenagers continuing to escalate, drawing the gazes of the numerous Angels in the hall.

* * *

After Claudia left, Griselda immediately cut into the ongoing insult trade between her two junior Saints.

"Silence, both of you, or _I_ will lay you both out. I'm sure our respective Seraphs will understand."

Both Issei and Nero shut up immediately. The two teens knew full well what Griselda was like when she was angry, and neither wanted to suffer her wrath.

Instead, they both continued to stare each other down, neither young Saint willing to budge.

Once the two had quieted down, the Queen of Hearts continued. "Now, we will all sit here until Claudia returns, and we will do so in complete silence. You two have proven you cannot be trusted not to spark off a verbal war, so I will not allow you access to any metaphorical fuel."

"But-" both tried to say, before being stopped by the Queen of Hearts.

"I said no talking."

Meekly, the two both submitted, contenting themselves with glaring at each other.

* * *

After several long minutes of dead silence, Claudia returned.

"The Seraphs have been informed of Issei's arrival, and have instructed us to make our way to the training building. The combat exercise will be conducted there. They have, however, instructed us to walk."

Slowly, without breaking each other's gazes, the two teenage Saints pushed away from the table and returned to their proper positions.

Only when they turned did the two's eyes focus on something other than each other.

* * *

As the four Angels walked towards the training building, Nero and Issei walked side-by-side in total silence. Each one wondered how the other would look when they lost.

By contrast, the respective Queens of their suits were freely swapping words, both rather embarrassed by the behavior of their juniors. Both spoke quietly, and stood several meters back so as not to be heard by the Jack and Ace.

"So," Claudia said, "I see that Issei's as hot-blooded as Nero is."

Griselda hummed in agreement. "Indeed. More reserved in showing it, yes, but Issei has never been one to back down from a challenge, no matter how ill-advised it is."

Claudia nodded.

"I take it that Nero has been acting this way for quite a while?" Griselda asked.

The Queen of Hearts rarely spent much time with those not within her own deck or the church facility she ran, but Claudia was one of the exceptions.

In truth, while Griselda got on just fine with the other members of her deck, she found their rather relaxed dispositions to be somewhat frustrating much of the time. The Queen of Hearts thanked God that her opposite among Uriel's Saints was just as serious as she was, in her own way.

"Yes," the Queen of Diamonds sighed. "Lord Uriel's entire deck has listened to him rant about how the "Dragon Saint" shouldn't be in Heaven for weeks on end. I'll be the first to admit we're rather tired of listening to him. We all love Nero dearly, but once he gets an idea in his head, you'll never hear the end of it."

Claudia looked at Griselda with a wry smile on her face. "In all honesty, I'm dearly hoping that Issei wins this little brawl. Maybe that will knock some stuffing out of Nero and shut him up for a little while."

Griselda simply chuckled without answering.

* * *

Upon their arrival at the training building, Issei's heart began to pound.

Some of it was due to his worries of not doing well. Some of it was fearing Griselda's disappointment, which would certainly result in even harsher training.

But most of it was due to who was gathered to watch.

Dozens of Angels were seated among the stands. Issei picked out all four members of the Four Great Seraphim in one set of seats at one side of the stadium, accompanied by, at Issei's count, six others.

Issei swallowed as he realized that not just his King and Nero's were here. This little bout was going to be observed by the Ten Seraphs, numerous high-ranking Angels, and if Issei's eyes were to be believed, most of the Brave Saints. Just from a glance, Issei could see Xenovia, Asia, Dulio, Deethelm, and Mirana.

All of them shot him a grin and a nod, which helped to calm his nerves a slight bit.

"Scared, Hyoudou?" came Nero's voice.

"You wish," Issei shot back, not bothering to look at Nero as he did so.

Nero smirked, but did not reply; he was sure that his opponent was shaking in his shoes.

A moment later, Issei felt Griselda's hand on his shoulder, and he turned to look at her.

"This way, Issei."

* * *

Issei was led into the armory, where Griselda sat him down and told him that he had five minutes to prepare a strategy in his head, and that Nero was being given the same amount of time in another location.

She also made it clear that he was not allowed to charge the Boosted Gear whilst within, and that the Seraphs would know if he had cheated.

The brunette didn't bother to ask the Queen of Hearts for aid in battle strategy; as far as he was concerned, this fight was his and Ddraig's. Nothing was on the line, and as such the Jack of Hearts felt that he alone should figure out how to handle the situation.

He doubted she would have been allowed to aid him, anyway.

* * *

Issei had been thinking for less than thirty seconds when heard the Welsh Dragon's voice.

 **"So, any ideas, Issei?"**

"One, and it's nothing custom. I don't know anything about how Nero fights."

 **"Well, he's hot-blooded. Maybe you can exploit that?"**

"Was already planning on it. He's not hard to provoke."

He heard Ddraig sigh. **"Well then, what's this "plan" of yours?"**

Issei gave a humorless snort. "I can't say it's that great, but it's all I could come up with. Would really help if I knew Nero's fighting style, but…"

 **"Let's hear it."**

"Okay, then. Here it is..."

Issei then laid out the exact details of the small gambit he had thought of, possible only with Ddraig's cooperation.

* * *

For a few moments afterwards, Ddraig didn't reply, and Issei was sure the Welsh Dragon was preparing some sort of tirade of insults at even coming up with the plan that he had.

Then, a bellowing, uproarious laugh emanated from the gauntlet.

 **"Reckless, Issei! Reckless and crazy! I like it!"**

Issei gave a half-grin at those words. "So you'll go with it?"

 **"Well, since we're completely lacking in other strategies, yeah. I'll back that move, partner. Let's cut this Saint down to size."**

Issei felt his confidence begin to glow brighter, and his heart raced with excitement.

"Hey, even if I go down…"

 **"If you go down, go down in a roaring blaze, Issei Hyoudou."**

* * *

Issei stood on one side of the arena, the seats of the Seraphs directly in his view.

Nero Raimondi stood across from him, perhaps fifty feet away.

Ace and Jack stared each other down, waiting for the seconds to tick by and the buzzer that would announce the beginning of their little bout to play.

Each one's heart was racing. Neither was willing to back down, but both were also secretly frightened. Sinful though it was, their own slight notes of personal pride were the sole stake in this bout.

And that was enough to make both Saints fight to their last breaths, if need be. Neither wanted to be the loser, despite the total lack of any reason to care in the long run.

Second by second. Moment by moment.

Then, the screech of the buzzer was heard.

* * *

Almost immediately, and as Issei had hoped, Nero bolted towards him, a light sword forming in each hand as he did so.

Issei simply extended his arm as soon as he heard the buzzer.

As Nero's swords formed, Issei's familiar red-gold gauntlet formed.

 **"BOOST!"**

A couple of seconds later, Nero was on him, bringing one of the swords down in a strike intended for his head.

Issei, however, jumped slightly to one side, the strike missing him by inches.

Nero brought his other sword towards him, this swing horizontal. Issei dodged again by moving backwards.

This pattern continued for several more seconds; Nero would attempt to slice him with his swords, and Issei would simply dodge out of the way, often avoiding the strikes by only a hair's breadth. He didn't bother to form a sword of his own; he could tell just by looking at Nero's attacks that the Ace of Diamonds would shatter his blades as fast as he could make them.

 **"BOOST!"**

* * *

"This is rather odd…" Griselda said to Mirana as she watched her student dance out of the way of Nero's strikes without even attempting to retaliate. "This is not like him. In our training, even when he was not using the Boosted Gear, he was much quicker than this."

"You think he's still hurting?" Deethelm asked. "I mean, I saw how battered he was, and that was only a week ago. Maybe it still hurts for him to move any quicker?"

Griselda simply chewed her lip, hoping this was all part of some gambit or another.

* * *

"Stay still, you!" Nero shouted, his voice cracking slightly as he did so, leaving Issei to smirk as he literally backflipped out of the range of another strike.

"Eh, not quite high enough. If you want to make the choir, you'll have to do an even higher pitch."

"Why, you little!" Nero screamed even louder as he charged Issei once more, pushing Issei further back across the arena.

 **"BOOST!"**

"Gotta say, Nero," Issei quipped as he continued to dodge the Ace's attacks, "you're not good at this whole "insults" thing. "Why you little!"? Really?"

"You dare mock me?!" Nero said, falling for one of Issei's gambits as anger flooded his veins. His strikes steadily became less coordinated, though not by much.

Issei, however, felt a small bit of confidence well up within him. Unless Nero was greatly holding back, the Ace was nowhere near as fast as he had been worrying.

No, the thing to worry about was the enormous gouges his strikes were leaving in the ground; clearly he favored power over speed.

Regardless, Issei could tell that Nero was employing his own gambit. Even in his anger, Nero's efforts were directed towards a clear goal, and Issei found himself unable to fight it.

Slowly but steadily, Issei found himself being pushed back, towards the wall.

* * *

"What is this Jack of yours doing?" Sandalphon demanded of Gabriel. "Is this the fruit of his training by your Queen? Simple dodging?"

Gabriel shrugged. "Perhaps. But I would doubt it." The lone female Seraph smiled. "Perhaps he's scouting Nero out and intends to make some maneuver once he feels ready?"

"I don't think so, Gabriel."

The two Seraphs both turned to the owner of the deep, booming voice that had spoken.

"I think," Uriel said, resting his chin on his bare knuckles, "that your Jack knows he can't match Nero for raw power in his base state. This whole gambit seems a way to stall for time to let his Boosted Gear charge up and perhaps exhaust some of Nero's energy." Uriel shook his head. "I hope that isn't all of Issei's plan. I may not have seen Issei fight before this, but I can say without hesitation that Nero has _far_ more endurance than him. If Issei does not end this fight quickly, my Ace will win the battle of attrition."

Gabriel and Sandalphon both nodded and turned their eyes back to the field.

The female Seraph let out a slow, almost imperceptibly quiet breath. She knew there was nothing on the line, but as a King, she still desperately wanted her Saint to claim victory, simply out of sheer principle.

 _Issei Hyoudou… please win this…_ _for yourself..._

* * *

"You're better than I expected, I'll give you that!" Nero growled as he lunged towards Issei again, the Jack of Hearts neatly dodging back from the X-shaped strike Nero formed with his two blades.

"Thank you," Issei said appreciatively as he avoided another strike. "I've worked hard to become so. If only you'd done the same."

 **"BOOST!"**

"You think I can't beat you, dragon?!"

"You've been doing a mighty poor job of it so far. You ready?"

"For what?" Nero demanded, before realizing an instant later that the question wasn't directed at him.

 **"EXPLOSION!"**

Nero barely had time to dodge sideways before Issei's fist hit the air where the Ace had been a heartbeat earlier.

Suddenly finding himself on the defensive, the Ace let his blades vanish as he began to dodge Issei's strikes; he wasn't sure how strong they actually were, and thus did not try to block them.

Only then did Nero realize that in hand-to-hand combat, Issei had become quite formidable in just a few months. The attacks came out with frightening speed, and the Ace's own efforts to retaliate were easily avoided in turn.

After a few seconds, Nero heard that call again, the deep voice of the Welsh Dragon bellowing through the arena.

 **"BOOST!"**

* * *

In the stands, Griselda was frowning. "Deethelm, I think you may be right. After four Boosts, Issei should be quicker than _this_ , at the very least. This is about the speed he moved with only one Boost during our last training session."

"I don't think so."

Deethelm, Mirana and Griselda all looked up to find the Joker of Heaven standing not far behind them, eating what appeared to be a plate of lasagna.

"Dulio, what do you mean?" Mirana asked.

"Simple. I've seen Issei fight, and I know he wouldn't just toss an Explosion out at only four boosts."

"He just did," Mirana countered.

"Did he?" Dulio asked, eyebrow raised as he took another piece of lasagna into his mouth. "Then why's he still boosting?"

"What's that got to do with anything?" Mirana demanded.

"I've read up on the Boosted Gear. When the wielder uses Explosion, the boosts get disabled until the effect is over, and that takes a couple of minutes, which I bet Nero doesn't know."

"Then…" Mirana said for a minute, before her eyes went wide and a smile crossed her face. A few seconds later, Deethelm and Griselda understood, too.

Dulio just grinned, nodding.

* * *

The sudden rally of power, from Nero's perspective, lasted no longer than thirty seconds, and despite getting three more Boosts off in that time, the expression on Issei's face told the Ace that his opponent was in no condition to do that again.

And so, brimming with confidence that he had the battle won, he reformed his swords, and Issei found himself pressed against the wall in short order.

"A good effort," Nero gloated. "But it's over, Issei."

Then, he swung one of his swords towards Issei's throat.

* * *

As Issei found himself with his back literally against the wall, he felt a rush of panic. He'd given up too much ground too quickly, and had lost track of where he was in the arena in the process. Fighting the panic down, he saw what Nero intended to do.

 _Take both those blades to my neck and pin me down?_

Issei knew he wouldn't have time to form a sword to stop Nero's own. He was instead, in those fractions of a second, beginning to consider a rather dangerous trick. After all, he _had_ watched a person take a light sword to their bare palm once before and stop it.

Issei knew he was not Kokabiel, not even close. But he saw no other options.

* * *

It appeared to all the Angels in the room that Issei had lost. Gabriel had given a sad sigh, whilst Uriel gave a disappointed shake of his head, as they watched Nero's sword raise and swing.

As one might expect, it took the entire room by surprise when Issei's arm moved.

Even more so when the blade stopped upon striking his palm.

For a fraction of a moment, Nero stared, struck dumb that this person, who'd barely been an Angel for two months, had managed to stop his blade barehanded.

Immediately afterwards, the Ace of Diamonds swung at Issei with his other blade.

And that one was also stopped, this time by the Jack's bare right hand.

* * *

As soon as the blade struck Issei's right hand, he let out a hiss of pain.

He might have been an Angel, but that clearly didn't grant total immunity to light-based weapons. The Boosted Gear's gauntlet had easily absorbed the blow of the first blade, but his right hand wasn't so lucky.

The blade dug deep into his palm, blood seeping out and flowing down his arm, which was only made worse by Nero insistently pushing ever harder against the blade.

Issei didn't waste more than a second before springing his counter.

"Over? Not even close."

An instant later, the blades caught fire.

* * *

Nero couldn't dismiss the blades fast enough to avoid the flames jumping onto him, and the Ace of Diamonds was promptly subjected to the flames burning _his_ hands. Letting out a brief yell of pain, the Ace leaped back, only able to douse the magical fire a few seconds after his skin had been torched.

Looking at the burns, the Ace grimaced, before looking up just in time to see Issei's fist a few inches from his face.

Never would the Ace of Diamonds be arrogant enough to claim that the strike didn't hurt like hell, and the taunting **"BOOST!"** he heard the instant it connected didn't help.

Reforming his blades, Nero screeched at Issei and leaped at him again.

Rather than simply content himself with dodging, however, Issei began to mix in some strikes of his own, improvising with his own magically created flames on the fly, this as much a practice session to him as it was a fight at this point.

And as it turned out, fire had a fairly low drain on his magical reserves.

* * *

As soon as Issei blocked the blades, the eyes of several of the Seraphs had gone wide, and when he set the blades ablaze, at least three of them looked back at Gabriel, including Uriel.

"Did _you_ know he'd mastered fire?" Uriel asked, his question one of genuine curiosity rather than offense.

Gabriel simply shrugged as a mysterious smile crossed her face.

"Maybe."

* * *

Griselda, Dulio, Deethelm, Xenovia and Asia all wore enormous smiles as they watched Issei dance around Nero's strikes and scorch the Ace in the meantime; Mirana and Asia, meanwhile, were outright laughing in a very giddy way.

Griselda's smile vanished, however, when she saw that Issei's skin had been cut more than once. She could see that his shirt had, in fact, numerous slashes in it, some of which were clearly leaking blood.

"Issei…" she murmured to herself. "You can't fight him to a standstill. End this before he does…"

She only hoped Dulio's information was correct.

* * *

Issei knew he just needed to last a few more seconds for that dozenth boost, but Nero's sudden burst of insane aggression and speed was making that much more difficult.

 _Maybe burning him wasn't the best idea I've had today…_

The Jack of Hearts was aware that the only reason he hadn't been knocked flat on his back yet was due to his flames and Nero's desire to not be thoroughly roasted by them. That didn't mean, however, that the Ace hadn't gotten in more than a few strikes.

He could feel the pain lancing through his chest from at least ten different slices, and that was without accounting for his right hand, which had been cut quite deeply.

 _Five…_

Another attack dodged.

 _Four…_

Issei slung a small fireball at Nero, who slid to the side with fluidity of a snake.

 _Three…_

The Jack of Hearts lost a small bit of his hair to Nero's right blade.

 _Two…_

Another small wall of flames was sent up, forcing Nero back.

 _One…_

Issei felt Nero's blade whistle a fraction of an inch from his left ear.

 **"BOOST!"**

As he dodged another attack, he gave Ddraig one word.

"Now!"

 **"EXPLOSION!"**

* * *

Nero Raimondi had no clear recollection of the next four seconds. His knowledge of what had happened in its specifics came from discussing it later with the Queen of his deck.

What he most clearly remembered was the Jack of Hearts suddenly vanishing from sight. Then, he remembered pain exploding through his skull, the sensation of his jaw crunching beneath an enormous amount of force, and the feeling of floating in midair. There was more pain as he collided with something hard and slid downwards. After that, he felt something pressing down on his chest with great force, and Issei Hyoudou's visage leering over him.

After that, nothing.

* * *

When Issei finally activated Explosion, it was very tempting to just sit and bask in the utter euphoria of being swamped with this much power.

But he did not; instead, he used the opportunity to dart behind Nero. Evidently, Nero hadn't even seen him move, a fact Issei exploited by grabbing him by the shoulder, spinning him around, and smashing his fist into Nero's jaw.

Even Issei hadn't expected to send the Ace of Diamonds flying with that strike, but fly without wings he did, straight into the solid wall of the arena.

Even as Issei crossed the arena at a blindingly fast pace to pin the Ace before he could get up, he knew it was unlikely to be necessary to beat him down any further.

But Issei wasn't quite prepared for the damage his strike had done.

Nero's mouth was twisted at an odd angle, while his cheek was completely smashed in. The wall against which the Ace had collided was spattered with blood.

Despite that, Issei took no chances, forming his only sword of the match and pointing it at Nero's throat, while his foot pressed down on the Ace's chest.

For just a second, the entire arena was dead silent. Not a single Angel spoke, moved, or indeed even seemed to breathe.

Then, Uriel stood, and through a simple spell, broadcast his voice throughout the entire building.

"Defeat is recognized. Issei Hyoudou is the winner."

* * *

 _And cut_.

 _Now_ _ **here's**_ _a chapter I struggled to write. I may well go back and rewrite this at some point…_


	44. A Couple New Tricks

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

It took a moment after the announcement of Issei's victory for the brunette to process it.

Once he had, he slowly moved his foot from the unconscious Nero's chest, dismissing his sword as he did so. A moment later, the brunette dismissed the Boosted Gear as well.

He took one step back from the banged-up Ace. Two.

Then, with the power of Explosion still pumping through his veins, he sprang nearly a story into the air.

Once he reached the height of the jump, he spread his wings.

* * *

For a few moments after Issei took to the wing, the arena remained almost silent. The only sounds were Raphael contacting the Angels in Fifth Heaven and arranging for them to pick Nero up.

Then, in the stands, someone began clapping. When Gabriel's Saints, Irina and Deethelm turned around, they saw who it was.

A moment later, they turned back and joined Dulio in his applause.

Soon enough, a few more Angels in the crowd began clapping. Then a few more joined _them_ , and the domino effect was off.

After just a handful of moments, the entire arena had erupted in an ovation for Issei Hyoudou.

"Thanks, Ddraig," Issei said, not caring much about the applause. Certainly, he was flattered, but he was also a bit worried about how Nero's King might respond to his Ace's injuries. "Couldn't have done it without you."

 **"You're welcome, partner."**

The Red Dragon Emperor spoke only three words, but they were suffused with enough joy and energy to tell Issei that Ddraig had enjoyed the match as much as the Jack himself had.

Issei allowed himself a grin, even as he felt his body grow much heavier with Explosion's end. Once it had ended, he watched with a sigh of relief as a pair of Angels arrived and took Nero away for treatment.

* * *

"Issei?"

Flipping around, the brunette was surprised to find the Nine of Hearts flying just a few feet away from him.

"Hey, Asia. You need something?"

Asia shook her head. "No, but I think _you_ do," she said, pointing at Issei's deeply cut hand and slashed torso, which were freely dripping blood all over the arena floor. "I'll take care of those, if you'd like."

"Oh…" Issei said sheepishly. He, in all honesty, had barely registered the pain. After the truly vicious beatdown he'd received from Kokabiel, a deep gash in his hand and some cuts in his chest weren't anything he'd bother to get worked up over. "Well, uh… thanks, Asia."

Only then did Issei notice something new about the Nine of Hearts.

"Hey, Asia, when did you get another pair of wings?"

The blonde Angel smiled. "About a week ago. I was training with Lord Raphael and suddenly, _poof_ , I have another pair. When did _you_?"

"Err…" Issei said, averting his gaze. "When I was getting my tail kicked by a Fallen Angel cadre."

The smile vanished. "I heard about that from Lord Raphael," she said, her tone solemn. Then, she shook her head. "Now, then, Issei… hold out your arms."

The Jack of Hearts complied.

Asia's hands cupped themselves in front of her, her Sacred Gear's rings forming. Issei tipped his head to one side.

 _That's too far away for her Sacred Gear to work… something new?_

"Twilight Wyvern!"

The confident call of the technique's name was answered a moment later, when several small plumes of water jump from the nun's hands.

As Issei watched, rather surprised, the plumes began to assume the shape of small dragons, each with two wings and feet. When they were fully formed, they were curled up, as if inside an egg.

After several seconds, however, and as if on cue, they all sprang to life at once, watery wings flapping as they took off from the nun's palms and flew the few feet to Issei.

One by one, they each took a spot on Issei's arms.

"H-hey…" giggled Issei involuntarily, "…that tickles a bit…"

He swore he saw one of the wyverns _grin_ in response, though Issei was also certain it was just his imagination.

For a moment or two afterwards, the water-borne wyverns scanned Issei, each shifting slightly as they each seemed to lock on a specific point on Issei's body.

Then, each spat a globule of water towards the wounds on Issei's body, causing the Jack to yelp in surprise.

That surprise, however, was nothing compared to his feelings as Issei felt and watched the gashes in his hand and torso seal almost as soon as the water touched them.

Within a few seconds, the only indication Issei had been injured at all was the slices in the fabric of his shirt.

* * *

With the wyvern's work done, they all returned to Asia's hands, where they dissolved back into formless liquid.

Issei, meanwhile, was staring at his hand and examining his chest, jaw still hanging open.

"Well, that worked well, didn't it?" Asia asked, her tone happy.

"Yeah…" Issei said, patting himself down. "What _was_ that, though?"

Asia shrugged as the Jack looked back at her. "Lord Raphael taught me how to use some of his water magic, and I figured out a way to combine my Sacred Gear with what he taught me."

"And you did an excellent job at that, Asia."

Both Saint's eyes snapped downwards, as a presence that they both swore hadn't been there before suddenly blinked into existence.

"Lord Raphael!" both exclaimed at the same time.

"What?" the Seraph asked, shrugging. "You've never had someone disguise their presence from you, Issei?"

Raphael chuckled. "By the by, Asia, have you managed to finish learning the poison-extracting magic I instructed you to practice in your off-time?"

Asia gulped.

"I'll take that as a no," Raphael said, shaking his head, though it was clear to both Jack and Nine that the King of Clubs was amused by the whole situation. Then, the Seraph's attention turned back to Issei. "On an unrelated note, Issei, I've been asked to send you on your way. The Seraphs have something to give you."

The Jack blinked at him, and Raphael sighed.

"Zebel. Go. Now."

* * *

When Issei's cross formed back into his own shape, he was greeted by none other than the Kings of Spades and Hearts, to whom he bowed.

"Rise, Issei," Gabriel said almost immediately.

"Lord Michael, Lady Gabriel," Issei said. "I was told to come here by Lord Raphael; he informed me you had something for me?"

"Indeed we do, Issei," Gabriel said, her voice warm as she strode towards him. "Two things, actually."

Before Issei could respond, he found his King's arms encircling him, pulling him in close. Even as Issei returned the embrace, he felt himself blush.

"You did well today, Issei," Gabriel whispered in his ear. "It may be a sin, but I am _very_ proud of you. You've surpassed the Seraph's expectations." The hug tightened. "And I want you to _keep_ surpassing them. _Keep_ growing stronger and more powerful. For yourself, for me, for Heaven."

She pulled back from Issei, though she still maintained a loose embrace. "Will you do that, Issei?"

"I will, Lady Gabriel," Issei replied, without a hint of hesitation or dishonesty.

She smiled, before she pulled him close once more.

* * *

When the two separated, Michael cleared his throat.

"Well, now that that's taken care of, it's time we get to what we _actually_ called you here for, Issei Hyoudou."

The King of Hearts simply shot a half-smile at her brother, who sighed in response.

Then, Michael raised his hand.

Before Issei's eyes, a brilliant light began to form before the King of Spades.

After his eyes had adjusted, the brunette watched, quite surprised, as the light began to warp and distort. Slowly but steadily, it assumed the shape of a sword.

Then, as the light faded, Issei was awash in a holy aura that made the Excalibur's cores pale in comparison.

"Behold, Issei Hyoudou," Michael said. "This is the Holy Sword wielded by Saint George."

Issei's eyes went wide.

"Then that's… _Ascalon?!_ "

Gabriel smiled. "Indeed it is, Issei. The dragonslayer's sword."

The sword itself was a beautiful work of craftsmanship. The upper part of the blade was polished to an almost mirror sheen, while its guard was split into four yellow pieces, each resembling a dragon's claw. The grip, meanwhile, was very ordinary in its appearance; it was simply, if still elegantly, painted in a gray and red pattern.

Issei was interrupted from his examination of the sword by Michael's words.

"From this point forward, Issei Hyoudou, we leave the sword of Saint George in your care."

Issei's jaw dropped, the brunette having to force himself to shut it before he spoke again.

"You… you would gift this to me, Lord Michael? Such a powerful holy sword… and yet you wish for me to have it? I'm honored sir, but… bewildered, too…"

The King of Spades smiled. "That will become clear in time, Issei Hyoudou. But that time is not now; for now, accept this gift and carry on the legacy begun by Saint George."

 **"Which then brings us to the** _ **obvious**_ _ **problem**_ **with that."**

Issei, Michael and Gabriel all jumped slightly.

"Uh… Ddraig, not a good time."

The Red Dragon Emperor, however, flatly ignored his host, instead choosing to tear into his host's King.

 **"Gabriel, I know your brother Uriel got the brains of you four, but even** _ **you**_ **have to realize that Issei isn't a natural wielder. He cannot use Ascalon with** _ **any**_ **degree of effectiveness; the sword will simply ignore his attempts to draw its power out of it, just like any non-natural born who tries to use a Holy Sword, if it doesn't just zap his hand. And even if he was a natural wielder, Ascalon is the pickiest Holy Sword in existence. The chances of him being able to use it would be virtually nill."**

Gabriel's teeth clenched, but she showed no other signs of anger as she answered. "Of _course_ we have considered that, Red Dragon Emperor. What fools do you take us for?"

 **"You don't want me to answer that, Gabriel."**

The King of Hearts refused to allow this barb to stick. Instead of replying, she reached into her robes withdrew a small item, and held it out towards Issei.

When the Jack of Hearts took it, he saw that it was a beautiful, crimson-colored crystal, about the size of the palm of his hand.

"That, Issei Hyoudou, is the fruit of the second Holy Sword Project."

Issei's jaw clenched, but Gabriel cut his anger off before he could say anything.

"Let me assure you now, Issei, that absolutely no one has come to harm as a result of that project. The Seraphs personally made sure of that."

Issei exhaled a small sigh of relief.

"That crystal," Gabriel continued, "should grant you the ability to wield the Holy Sword Ascalon. The first and likely last crystal of its kind."

The brunette nodded. "Thank you, Lady Gabriel." He stared at it for a moment, biting his lip. "How do I…?"

"Press it against your chest and fold your palms over it."

Issei did as he was instructed.

* * *

For a moment, nothing seemed to happen.

Then, Issei felt the crystal dissolve into his chest. His surprise, however, was short-lived.

This was due to the fact that a second later, the brunette's torso began to burn. At first, it was as though a match was being run over it.

Very quickly, however, the pain worsened into a searing blaze, leaving Issei to gasp shallowly and clench his teeth hard enough that he was surprised he didn't draw blood from his gums. His arms wrapped around his torso, and he found himself unconsciously learning over.

"Issei!" Gabriel said. "Is something wrong?"

"Lady Gabriel," Issei gasped, "is this supposed to hurt… this much?"

"It shouldn't," his King said, her voice thick with concern as she stepped forward. "Has the crystal been absorbed?"

"Y-Yes," Issei said, still trying to keep his voice steady even as brilliant pain lanced through him.

"Hmm…" Michael said. "It's likely due to the unrefined nature of the crystal. The crimson crystal is struggling to stabilize itself within you, Issei. We saw something similar with the original crystals intended for Excalibur; with careful refinement, it became almost instant."

Issei looked at the King of Spades helplessly.

Michael raised a palm. "Worry not, Issei. You are in no danger." The Archangel shrugged. "Nothing I can do about the pain, though. You'll just have to endure that."

"For how long?!"

"I told you, until it stabilizes."

"When's that gonna be?!"

"Didn't Uriel tell you that we're not clairvoyant?"

Never had Issei hated Michael quite as much as he did at that moment.

* * *

It was after nearly fifteen minutes of being doubled over in pain that it finally faded.

Issei's shirt, which had been a bit wet from Asia's wyverns before, was now thoroughly soaked in sweat. Issei's stamina, which had taken a hit from his fight with Nero, was now such that he wanted to just curl up and take a nap right on the floor of Zebel.

"Well then," Michael said, his voice entirely too cheery, "that wasn't so bad, was it?"

 _Must… restrain… urge… to throw… fireballs…_

"No, Lord Michael, it wasn't," Issei said, taking great pains to inform Michael through his expression alone that he was being sarcastic.

Michael, however, simply grinned. "If there are no other issues, then…"

Ascalon floated towards Issei, and his annoyance with Michael was immediately forgotten.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Issei's hand reached for the blade.

When Issei's fingers reached the grip and wrapped around it, both Michael and Gabriel breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

Issei, meanwhile, felt a surge of energy flood through him as soon as he took the blade into his hand. It was only natural, he supposed; an Angel, a holy being, would naturally like the feeling of a holy weapon.

The brunette took several steps back, before giving the sword a few experimental swings.

"So, Issei?" Gabriel asked, her tone happy. "How do you like it?"

"Well," Issei said as he looked at his own face reflected in the blade, "I'm no expert, but… wow. Just... _wow_. This is the best sword I've ever used and by a _long_ distance." He swung it again. "Well-balanced, hilt's just the right size, perfect shape on the grip…"

He looked at his King and smiled. "Yes, Lady Gabriel, I like it. I like it a lot. Thank you for this blade. I'll put it to the best use I know how. I promise."

Gabriel returned his smile, before something else materialized in her hand.

"Think fast."

Without even letting him get a clear glimpse of the item, the sole female Seraph tossed it through the air. Issei barely managed to snatch it before it hit his face.

When the brunette looked over what it was he held in his hand, he discovered that it was a custom-made scabbard, covering everything except the handle.

"That," Gabriel said, pointing at the scabbard, "was purpose-built for Ascalon. That should disguise its aura from even the most talented aura sensors. Use it and no other scabbard for your new blade, Issei Hyoudou."

"Also," Michael interjected, his tone now quite serious, "tell no one that we have given you this blade until the time is right. You will know when that is."

Issei agreed, despite having no idea why.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _If you're wondering why this chapter took a while, it's quite simple, really._

 _I discovered that both Roller Coaster Tycoon and Sim City 4 Deluxe are on Steam._

 _Long story short, I haven't left my house in three days._


	45. No Hard Feelings

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

After a moment, Issei gracefully spun Ascalon on his hand until the blade was pointing the way he wanted. Then, very carefully, he slid it into the sheath.

As he did so, the three Angels felt the holy aura that had enveloped them vanish from the room.

"Well then," Issei said, "will that be all?"

"Just a small question, Issei," Michael said. "When did you gain control over flames?"

Issei cracked a humorless grin as he remembered the frankly idiotic move he'd made when the flames first began to obey him. "When I was down for the count against Kokabiel. I managed to get one final move in, but… well, if you're wondering why Lord Raphael had to come bail me out, Lord Michael… all the fire really did was get Kokabiel mad."

"I see. My congratulations to you, regardless." Michael tipped his head to one side. "What do you plan to do now?"

Issei bit his lip, having put very little thought towards that. "Get better at using fire? Increase my magical reserves?"

Michael shrugged. "Not a bad pair of ideas, Issei. Refinement of technique _is_ incredibly important." He waved a hand. "You're dismissed."

Issei nodded. "Thank you, Lord Michael, but there's one thing I'd like to take care of."

"What's that?"

"Is Lord Uriel available?"

* * *

"You wished to speak with me, Jack of Hearts?"

Lord Uriel's imposing form stood before Issei, the King of Diamonds having arrived within moments upon being called.

"Yes, Lord Uriel," Issei said, his tone respectful. "I… wish to apologize for your Ace's injuries. I mean, I meant to defeat him, but I didn't mean to put him in the hospital. I'll accept any punishment you deem appropriate, if you wish."

Almost immediately, Issei's apology was rewarded with a slight grin, before a booming laugh exited the Seraph.

"While I appreciate your taking responsibility for his injuries, Issei," Uriel said, smiling, "you should also realize that we had prepared space for both of you in Fifth Heaven."

Issei blinked. "You did?"

"Indeed, Issei," Gabriel cut in. "We knew that regardless of which of you won the fight, at least one of you was liable to end up in the infirmary."

"Besides that," Uriel said, taking the reins of conversation, "I've seen his injuries. While they certainly will hurt come tomorrow, with the staff of Fifth Heaven, Nero will make a full recovery within a couple of days. Good thing, too – just in time for the peace conference this Sunday."

Issei blinked once more. "Peace conference?"

"They haven't told you?" Uriel asked, before shooting an annoyed glance at Gabriel and Michael. "Really, you two, you must keep this young Saint better informed."

"To be fair, Uriel," Gabriel shot back, "Issei also hasn't been here since the day he made his complaint to you two. He was instructed to remain at home and recover from the beating he received from Kokabiel, which it seems he has. If you'll recall, the peace conference was only scheduled two days ago."

Uriel sighed. "So be it. However, he _is_ your Saint, Gabriel. I see no reason you should not explain it to him."

The King of Diamonds stepped back, whilst Gabriel took the place the former had been standing in.

"Due to recent events, Issei," Gabriel said, "it's been decided by the Three Factions that we must make a true peace will all possible speed. At the moment, we are at a tense armistice, as I'm sure you're well aware of. While the Three Factions have been trying to slowly release the tension between our groups with signs of peace towards one another, Kokabiel's little stunt has shown us the need to establish a real alliance."

"What "signs of peace" do you mean, my Lady?" Issei asked.

She smiled. "The Brave Saint cards, for one thing. Those cards exist only with the help of the Devils and Fallen Angels – the Devils provided the raw materials whilst the Fallen Angels and Angels worked to reverse-engineer the Evil Pieces system to reincarnate humans and other beings as Angels. The Brave Saint cards are, in fact, made from the same material as the Evil Pieces."

Gabriel put a hand up as Issei opened his mouth again, as the King of Hearts easily guessed his next question. "In exchange, Heaven has steadily reduced the activities of exorcists against Devils and Fallen Angels. It used to be that any Devil who crossed paths with an exorcist would likely wind up dancing with that exorcist's blade. Now, there's something of a "live-and-let-live" policy – exorcists don't attack Devils in their territories and exorcists try to refrain from intruding unless absolutely necessary, such as the case with Kokabiel. The exception, of course, is if said Devil or Fallen Angel decides to attack church facilities or members - or innocent people."

Issei nodded, taking all this in. "So… you're trying to put together a peace treaty to unite the factions and stop the conflicts for good?"

Gabriel nodded.

"So then... why's it important that Nero be healed up in time for the Peace Conference?"

"I, naturally, will be representing Heaven in these peace talks," Michael interjected. "I, however, will not be the only Angel in attendance. It has been decided that the Aces of the Four Great Seraphim – Irina Shidou, Mirana Shatarova, Deethelm Waldseemüller, and Nero Raimondi will accompany me in the meeting room." He smiled. "I would appreciate if you would refrain from telling Irina that I intend to grant her Sainthood earlier than I had originally planned. I think I shall enjoy her reaction to finding out."

Issei nodded. "I see. Thank you for that information. Well, hopefully it all goes well for you, Lord Michael."

 _Don't say it, don't say it…_ Issei thought.

Michael's chuckling crashed through his ears. "Oh, don't think you're getting out of it that easily."

"And there it is," Issei said as he buried his face in his hand.

"Azazel has insisted that both the Red and White Dragon Emperors be present for the peace conference," Michael explained, his grin widening.

"Because of course he does," Issei muttered.

"To be fair, Issei," Uriel said, "it should strengthen the credibility of any treaty that may develop if the current wielders of both Dragon Emperors stand behind it." He shot a meaningful look at Issei. "May I assume that we can count on your support of it?"

Issei nodded, mildly annoyed that Uriel had even asked. "Of course, Lord Uriel."

* * *

When Issei descended back to First Heaven, he did not take the more "scenic" route he usually took. Rather than start at the gate and use the distance as an excuse to spread his wings and fly about for a while, he instead appeared in his room in the Hearts building.

Immediately, Issei went over to the dresser and buried it beneath the robes that he had neatly folded there.

 **"So, Issei, let me congratulate you."**

"For what?" Issei asked, looking at his left hand in confusion.

 **"For managing to both defeat that little upstart and to stabilize the crystal. I was expecting that it would just refuse to take."**

"Uh, thanks?"

 **"A word of warning, though. The anti-dragon elements of Ascalon are still very much present within the sword, unless it was in some way modified to remove them. I would very much doubt that, however, because that would defeat the purpose of it."**

"I'm an Angel, though. Why do I care if those elements are there?"

Ddraig sighed. **"Issei, simply by bearing the Boosted Gear, you inherit my weaknesses as well as some of my strengths. Yes, Ascalon** _ **can**_ **hurt you. It is as lethal to you as any dragon."**

Issei blinked. "But… I mean, I touched the thing and managed to swing it around. I didn't feel anything."

 **"That isn't the problem, Issei. While wielding Ascalon should, in theory, cause you no harm on its own, take care that you do not cut yourself with the blade. It will slice through your bones as easily as your skin."**

Issei shuddered at that mental image as he began to vanish once more, warping towards the front gate as to avoid arousing suspicion. "Thanks for the heads-up…"

* * *

When Issei creaked open the door to the Hearts building, he was surprised to find it extremely quiet.

 _Are they still at the arena?_

Only when Issei was about halfway down the long entrance corridor did he begin to pick up the sound of chatter.

When he rounded the corner, he was greeted by the sight of the entire Hearts deck gathered at the long table, along with Irina, Dulio, Claudia and another person Issei didn't recognize.

"And the proud victor returns!" Dulio called out as soon as he saw Issei walk through the door. "Great job out there, Issei."

"Indeed," Griselda said, offering a smile. "You did quite well." Her expression shifted into a playful frown. "Though I must say, the tactic of catching blades with your bare hands was extraordinarily reckless, Issei. I thought I taught you better than that."

"Regardless," Claudia said before Issei could react, "it was an excellent fight, and I must say that I'm particularly impressed at your use of flames. I've been told you only mastered them recently, but I wouldn't have known that by the ease with which you tossed them around."

Issei chuckled, embarrassed at being complimented like this. "Well, I _was_ kind of making it up as I went. I'm more surprised that Nero fell for my plan as easily as he did."

"Well," the unknown young man spoke up as he stood, "like you probably noticed, he's short-fused and was probably underestimating you anyway, Issei."

This new person was at least six inches taller than Issei, dressed in the sorts of clothes Dulio often wore, with a head of short, chestnut hair of similar color to Irina's.

"Caesar Villiers," the man offered in a surprisingly high-pitched voice. He extended a rough, scarred hand, which Issei took. "Your opposite among the Diamonds."

Issei nodded. "Good to meet you, Caesar. Issei Hyoudou, but you knew that already. You a former exorcist?"

"Of course," Caesar replied nonchalantly. "Nearly all of us were, of course. I understand you were an exception?"

Issei nodded once more. "Yeah, but who I used to be doesn't matter anymore. I'm here now and I'm here to stay."

Caesar smiled. "Good to hear, Issei. By the way, thanks for taking Nero down a peg. Hopefully that will teach him to not judge based on history."

Xenovia laughed. "I guess Nero really hasn't changed, has he?"

"No, no he hasn't," Caesar said, chuckling.

"Uh, pardon my interruption," Issei said, eyebrow raised, "but what are you two talking about?"

Caesar shrugged. "Well, Nero's been ranting and raving about how you shouldn't be in Heaven for months. He said that you were surely going to fall any day now, that you would be too soft for a place as a Brave Saint and that you were only there because of the Boosted Gear."

"Well, that last part's kind of true, you know."

Another shrug. "Regardless, knocking Nero down the way you did should show both him and any other Angels who had any doubts that you're more than capable in combat."

"I wouldn't expect that to change Nero's mind, though," Xenovia added. "He's rather stubborn, as I'm sure you've noticed."

"What, did you know him?" Issei asked, looking at the Ten of Hearts.

Xenovia nodded. "Yes. He and I had something of a rivalry in the church. No surprise, of course, given that he was a natural-born wielder of Holy Swords, just the same way that I was."

"Really?" Issei said, surprised. "What sword's he compatible with?"

"Arondight," replied Caesar. "He insisted that he could beat you without using it. Though, I honestly doubt he would have won even if he had. Arondight wouldn't have allowed him to close the speed gap between you two. My congratulations to you as well, Griselda; it seems you trained him well."

Griselda smiled. "Thank you. Starting from scratch did have a few benefits when it came to training him, you know."

"And what were those?" Issei asked, deadpan as he shot her a dry, sarcastic look. When he remembered his initial training sessions, he mostly remembered pain, gasping, pain, ringing metal, pain, constant criticism, pain and of course, pain.

"While your somewhat poor physical condition _was_ a problem that had to simply be eradicated, having no knowledge of swordsmanship also meant that I did not have to force you to unlearn any bad habits. Instead, I was able to teach you the correct way to use a blade from the start."

"Hey, the same could be said for your magical skills," Dulio piped up. "You didn't have any tendency to try and take shortcuts, because you didn't have any idea how to."

"Wait, he's a skilled magician?" Irina asked, looking at Dulio, who shrugged.

"Well, Issei's not exactly on the level of a Seraph, but he learns quickly and managed to master both light and fire incredibly fast."

Irina smiled at that before looking at Issei. "So, Issei, since you've got fire under your belt, what element do you think you'll try to learn next?"

Issei blinked, but before he could say anything, Dulio cut her off. "Irina, there's a lot more to magic than just manipulating fire, water, wind, electricity and the earth." Dulio looked at Issei. "If anything, Issei, I'd advise you to learn some stronger barrier-type magics. You already have solid offensive options between light weapons and fire, and the basic light barriers I taught you are just that – pretty basic."

Issei chewed his lip, before he nodded, seeing Dulio's point. "Seems like a good idea."

Only then did Mirana speak up, having listened to the entire conversation without adding any words of her own. "Well, if that's your aim, I can help you with that." She fixed him with an innocent, yet teasing smile, her blue eyes filled with amusement.

"Uh… sure? Thanks?" Issei asked, not entirely sure if the Ace of Hearts was being serious.

Griselda, on the other hand, reacted with a sigh. "While I am personally of the opinion that you and her should never be left alone together, Issei, I also cannot deny that Mirana is far more skilled at barrier magic than I." The Queen of Hearts looked at Dulio. "However, why can _you_ not teach him?"

Dulio shrugged, a grin cracking his features. "Because Mirana already volunteered."

"And have I not told you about how Mirana teases Issei?"

"Haven't you also said how she knows when to stop?"

"Yes, but she should not be encouraged in this behavior."

"Letting her teach him isn't "encouraging" it, Griselda."

"I disagree."

As the two continued to argue back-and-forth, Issei buried his face in his hands, while everyone but the brunette, Griselda and Dulio struggled to suppress laughter.

After a few moments, Issei removed his hands and closed some of the distance between himself and Mirana, stopping several feet shy of where she was seated at one end of the table.

"Yeah, I'll take you up on that, thanks. When do you want to start?"

The smile returned. "How about tomorrow afternoon?"

Issei frowned. "Don't you have work to do then?"

The Ace gave a quick wave of her hand. "I should be able to clear this with Lady Gabriel with little issue. She wishes for you to grow stronger, Issei, perhaps even more than the rest of us." Mirana then stood, and was halfway past him before the brunette felt the familiar hand on his shoulder. "Don't concern yourself with the details, Issei. Just meet me in the library come tomorrow afternoon."

"Wait, there's a library in First Heaven?" Issei asked, his head turning to face Mirana's.

"Of course," the Ace replied. "It's directly above that office space. Just go through the records room and up the staircase. That's where First Heaven's library is, and where the books on the Angelic system of magic is kept."

With that, Mirana walked away, casually running her hand down Issei's shoulder and arm as she did so; Issei felt himself grow flustered with even that.

* * *

Once Mirana had gone, Issei immediately asked Dulio the obvious question.

"Hey, Dulio, does the library have books on fire magic?"

Dulio looked up from his continued "debate" with Griselda to shrug at him. "Yeah. Why do you ask?"

Issei fixed the Joker with an annoyed expression. "So… _why_ didn't you send me there when I asked you about it instead of having Lord Michael teach me?"

Dulio chuckled, even as Griselda continued her overly-long, elaborate explanation of… whatever. "Well, you know, even Lord Michael needs someone to mess with from time to time."

"So basically, you sent me to the leader of Heaven just so he'd get the chance to get laughs at my expense?" Issei demanded, his expression growing very annoyed.

Dulio grinned widely. "Yeah, pretty much. Even Lord Michael needs stress relief from time to time, you know."

"And why did _I_ need to be that stress relief?"

"Because as Mirana proves, you react more easily than most of us."

Issei opened his mouth to say something, before shutting it again and grumpily vanishing into a cross.

* * *

"And that is why, Issei, you must not allow the touch of a woman to corrupt your mind!" Griselda finally finished.

Only when she had did she open her eyes and realize that every single other Saint in the room was staring at her, their expressions ranging from amusement to annoyance.

After a moment, she realized that neither Issei or Mirana were present, and as if on cue, she felt Dulio nudge her side.

"You know that he's been gone for almost five minutes, right? And that that little diatribe was originally supposed to be directed at _me_?"

"Where did he go?" she hissed, her mind already picturing Mirana and Issei together, the former all over the latter.

Dulio, however, simply shrugged. "No idea, but I'd guess "home" might not be far off the mark. Oh, and he already agreed to practice with Mirana in the afternoons."

"Yet he must also train with me in sword combat-"

"Mirana can easily take care of that as well, Griselda," Claudia said, cutting her off. "Whether either of you like to admit it, she is just as skilled with a sword as you are."

"Mirana is not serious enough to train him-"

" _Lies_ ," said Xenovia, interrupting Griselda. "She trained _me_ a couple times, if you'll remember. And make no mistake: she is a taskmaster." Xenovia grinned impishly. "She doesn't quite exceed _you_ , of course, but I don't think that's possible."

"Xenovia!" Griselda said, her face turning red. "You are my sister! You are _supposed_ to have my back in these affairs!"

"I am only on the side of truth, Sister Griselda," Xenovia replied, assuming an exaggerated holier-than-thou expression.

Griselda buried her face in her hands.

"What, jealous?" Dulio teased.

"Yes, but not for the reason you imply…"

In full truth, Griselda held no romantic affection for Issei; rather, she enjoyed training him because it gave her a break from her paperwork, and she always enjoyed working with a student on a one-on-one basis.

* * *

Caesar, meanwhile, who had gone silent for several minutes, glanced towards the Nine of Hearts. "Is every day in the Hearts building like this?"

"Pretty much," the blonde said, obviously used to these sorts of antics.

* * *

 _And cut._


	46. Open House

_Next chapter._

* * *

Dulio had been quite right on one point of fact: Issei had departed for home. He had no interest in listening to Griselda rant at him about sin for the thousandth time, and he saw no reason to hang around otherwise.

Instead, he'd simply warped back to one of the old school buildings – though not the one used by the Occult Research Club – and started his short trek home.

It was only when Issei was halfway back that he realized his mistake.

 _Shoot… how am I going to explain my shirt…?_

The brunette hadn't been thinking about it when he'd left Heaven. His mind had been on other things, concerning both the upcoming peace conference and the training with Mirana he would start the very next day. Now, however, he realized he had no explanation for the rips and gashes in his shirt, made by Nero's swords of light.

Of course, that just demanded the oldest excuse in the book.

* * *

"Hey, Issei!"

"Afternoon, Mom," Issei replied to his mother as he walked through the door, not bothering to hide the rips in the fabric. The teen's mother, of course, immediately took notice.

"What happened to you?" she asked, looking concerned.

"A small dog. Some idiot let it off its leash and it tried to scratch me. Didn't manage to cut me, though."

Issei's mother frowned, before nodding. "Some people just don't control their pets, do they? Anyway, how was your day?"

Issei shrugged. "School was… well, school. Work, work and more work, you know?"

His mother nodded, an understanding expression on her face. "I get it," she said, before laughing slightly. "I suffered through it too! I know how you feel! But that doesn't mean I'm not excited!"

"For what?" Issei asked.

"Open house!"

The lightbulb went on in Issei's head at those words. "Oh, right!" Issei said, pretending to have an ounce of enthusiasm. "Yeah, sorry, it kind of slipped my mind. I've been so busy with the club and the church, I haven't thought about it much."

In truth, Issei wasn't looking forward to this in the slightest. He _hated_ open house – his parents invariably made a thousand snarky comments about his perversion and took home video to capture his embarrassment in film for eternity. Which, to his parents, was even more reason to do it.

"I'm so excited to see how it's all running this year!" his mother gushed, appearing oblivious to her son's annoyance.

"I can assure you, it's running almost identically to how it did last year," Issei replied, deadpan. "Now then, I've got some homework to do…"

His mother nodded, but her smile faded as her son walked away and up the stairs.

The Hyoudou matron knew her son had just lied to her yet again.

* * *

Hours later, after Issei had drifted off to sleep, his parents met downstairs, speaking in hushed tones.

"So he came home with a ripped shirt?" the senior Hyoudou asked his wife.

The Hyoudou matron nodded. "He claimed it was a dog, but there's no way that's true. The cuts were too… precise? Clean? Not something an animal claw would make, at least."

"Another lie to add to the pile, I guess," Issei's father said.

It was obvious to the elder Hyoudous that their son had developed a sudden habit of spitting up falsehoods, traceable back to the night he had returned from his disappearance. Before that, the parent-son relationship had been built on trust; sure, Issei didn't always do right, but it never felt as though Issei had much beyond pornography to hide.

From the night he had returned to their home, however, Issei had been lying to them non-stop. While Issei's parents had absolutely been relieved to have their son back, they did not buy his explanation for his sudden vanishing for an instant. Issei was not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but his parents also knew that he was not so helpless as to get himself into a situation such as the one he described.

Furthermore, they had, without Issei's knowledge, checked with the church he had mentioned. The people in charge, when shown Issei's picture, had confirmed that he had never set foot in or around the church, nor did they have a blonde, green-eyed young man among their ranks.

Issei's parents, however, had not immediately called him on this, opting instead to continue to watch and listen. Every time Issei would claim to be going to "the church", they would try to follow him; without exception, however, they lost track of their son almost immediately.

They had checked with the school, which confirmed that no Bible study clubs existed within their walls.

Issei's illusion had taken little effort to remove, but it left only a frustrating blackness beyond it. Issei was not doing anything with the local church, nor was he really the faithful Christian he claimed to be, that much was obvious. What was not so obvious to his parents was what Issei was _actually_ doing – for the life of them, they could not even begin to piece together what their son was involved with.

All they could tell was that Issei wanted desperately to conceal his activities, despite his abysmal skills at lying.

* * *

Issei Hyoudou, at present, wished to die.

Not literally, of course – suicide was the worst possible sin – but it was a similar feeling.

The class his parents were currently attending was a foreign language class – his powers as an Angel should have made it an easy way to show off in front of his parent and everyone else. While he still struggled with the writing, he didn't even have to think in order to speak the language.

But no, of course not. Of course they wouldn't be doing normal lessons. Of course they wouldn't be studying the material upon which the entire curriculum was based. Of course they would be doing something completely esoteric and ultimately pointless to their education.

That was how Issei Hyoudou found himself with a block full of modeling clay before him and no idea what to sculpt.

What made it unbearable, however, was the fact that the teen could hear his parents behind him, and he knew that the camera must be rolling.

As he absentmindedly molded the clay with his hands, Issei's thoughts began to wander over the previous day.

The peace conference was mere days away, and he had a new bit of magic he would have to start learning this afternoon, from one of Heaven's more beautiful Saints.

Issei made sure to squash those thoughts _before_ his fingers could start sculpting something lewd. He did _not_ want to find himself with black wings because of an innocent school assignment.

* * *

Even after spending the entire class struggling to shape the clay in his hands into Ddraig's form, the final result still looked more like a mutant lizard from a bad kaiju movie than the majestic Heavenly Dragon.

Issei sighed as the bell rang and the parents in the room began to file out, chatting with one another in the hallway.

It wasn't that he was frustrated with the clay; even with his amateur skills, he still enjoyed the creative process and _trying_ to make the material appear the way he wanted to.

No, what made him sigh was the sight of Matsuda and Motohoma, two people he'd barely spoken to over the last few months, storming towards him with murder in their eyes.

"What do you guys want?"

"We _want_ the old Issei back!" Matsuda shouted. "We're sick of you acting like- "

"Like a normal person who _isn't_ completely despised by every female in this school?" Issei said, cutting him off.

"Like you're better than us!" Motohoma yelled, finishing Matsuda's prior sentence.

Issei raised an eyebrow. "When did I do that?"

"You keep walking around like you're some sort of gift from God!" Matsuda said. "Like you're so much better since you vanished!"

"I'd like to think I _am_ better. I've become a more functional member of society, that's for sure."

Issei, for his part, was struggling to remember why he had ever liked these two to begin with, and was coming up empty for answers besides having been an equally massive pervert at the time.

He'd found out not long after the rumors about his and Kiba being lovers began that Matsuda and Motohama had been actively helping to spread them. In a show of _extreme_ self-restraint, the brunette had refrained from bashing the two's noses in, and attributed it to some sort of issue the two would start to work through.

As time had gone on, however, his opinion of the two had continued to backslide. They'd continued in their immature efforts to attempt to "bring him back", refusing to accept how Issei had changed, to the point that the teenager had grown completely numb to their attempts. Several times, the two perverts had even tried to beat him up.

 _This is what, the fifth time?_ Issei thought as Motohama's clenched fist flew towards him, the form basic and extremely crude.

The Jack of Hearts, of course, easily caught and stopped the blow, before neatly avoiding another shot from Matsuda. An instant later, Issei had placed his fist against Motohama's cheek. It was done with virtually no force, and intended only as a demonstration.

"Like I said last time, work on your defense. You're full of openings."

With that, Issei turned and left the room, dodging the thrown book without slowing down.

* * *

The brunette hadn't made it ten steps from the classroom before he was interrupted by his father's voice.

"Hey, Issei!"

Issei turned to find his parents talking to…

 _Lord Lucifer?!_

"Ah, Issei," Sirzechs said. "Good to see you again."

Unlike when the brunette Saint had first met the Devil King in Heaven, Sirzechs Lucifer was not dressed in the full mantle befitting his station. Instead, he was dressed in a simple black suit.

Besides for his lengthy crimson hair, Issei would never have looked at him twice if he did not know who he truly was.

Issei nodded, gulping. "Uh… good to see you too… uh… Mr. Gremory?"

The Devil King waved his hand. "Sirzechs. "Mr. Gremory" just sounds awkward." The Devil King winked.

Issei nodded.

"We met him in the hallway just after class let out," Issei's father said, stating the obvious. "And here we are, still talking to each other in the hallway." The Hyoudou patriarch turned to look at the Devil King once more. "You're Rias Gremory's brother, you said? When'd you meet our son? He's never mentioned you."

Sirzechs nodded, that kind, pleasant smile Issei had seen months before on his face. "Rias invited Issei to join the Occult Research Club at one point. It was just a coincidence that I happened to be visiting the day he did. Issei considered it and decided it wasn't for him. That was pretty much it – he probably forgot all about me."

This was, of course, a complete lie, but Issei's parents seemed to buy it anyway.

"I see," Issei's father said, his tone pleasant. "Say, you want to keep chatting back at our house? I could pick us up something to drink, if you'd like."

Sirzechs looked over at Issei for a breath or two.

The brunette, through his facial expressions alone, did everything in his power to convince him that this was a terrible idea.

All he received in turn was a mischievous smile, before the Devil King turned to face the elder Hyoudous once more. "Absolutely! Sounds wonderful, thank you. Issei, tell Rias to meet me at your house tonight, won't you?"

"I'll pass it along," Issei grumbled, shoulders slumped.

"See you at home, then, Issei!" the brunette's father called, before Issei's parents and Sirzechs walked down the hall and out of the school.

* * *

Only once the Devil King and the Hyoudou parents had left did Issei begin to notice a distinct, Devilish aura filling the hall. He turned.

There, about fifteen meters back and red in the face as her own hair, was Rias Gremory.

"So, I guess I don't need to fill you in on where to go after school?"

"Sh-shut up!" Rias said, her tone overflowing with embarrassment.

"Hey!" Issei said, annoyed. "This wasn't my idea, okay? I don't like this any more than you do, Rias."

Rias simply huffed and walked away, likely swearing up worse than Issei ever had in front of Griselda.

* * *

Not one minute after Rias had gone, however, Issei's life was jolted around once more by a stampede of students. The Angel's quick reactions were barely enough to save him from being trampled, leaving him pressed up against the wall.

What _really_ got Issei's attention, however, was what was being said.

The brunette, even with his superhuman hearing, could only make out small snippets here and there of what was being said, but his mind was able to quickly piece together something like a coherent picture from the jumble.

 _A magical girl photo shoot in the gym?_

Issei knew he shouldn't follow, but curiosity was impossible to resist.

* * *

A few minutes of following the mob later, and Issei indeed found himself in the gym, where there were indeed many students with cameras.

Up on the stage, there was a young woman dressed in a magical girl outfit, which Issei desperately tried to avoid looking too closely at.

Instead, he tried to focus on the young woman's face. While difficult and somewhat unclear at the distance Issei stood due to his being at the back of the mob, the Angel was slowly able to make her features out.

And when he did, for a moment, he couldn't believe his eyes.

A few moments after that, his mouth broke into a goofy grin, while he desperately tried to suppress uproarious laughter, which came out instead in choking giggles.

" _Hey_!"

Issei and the mob of students glanced upward towards the source of the distinctly masculine voice that had shouted the single word.

Before, the only person on the stage had been the young woman, but now there was Genshirou Saji, who appeared rather stern.

" _Disperse_! We don't need this kind of commotion on the day of open house! Get out of here!"

There was an enormous amount of grumbling, snarling and muttered threats towards Saji, but eventually, the students grudgingly did as they were told.

* * *

Only when Issei, Saji and the magical girl cosplayer were left alone did Saji turn his attention to the latter.

"All right, then. Are you related to someone at this school?"

The young woman nodded, a cute smile on her face.

"Well then," Saji said, completely unaffected by the attempt at a charm, "they should have told you that this sort of outfit is unacceptable here. You need to stop with this-"

"Saji?" Issei called out.

"Yeah, what, Hyoudou?" the blonde Devil replied, annoyed. "What do you want? I'm busy."

"Not trying to trouble you," Issei said, still grinning, "but you should probably know that that's Serafall Leviathan you're talking to. You know, one of the Four Devil Kings?"

Saji's mouth dropped open as he did a double-take. "Wait, what?"

Serafall nodded, the same smile on her face as before.

Saji immediately dropped into a deep bow. "I, uh… I'm sorry. I deeply apologize for my-"

"Aww, don't worry," the female Devil King said, patting Saji's head. "I'd never do something to hurt one of my sister's pieces! You're one of her Pawns, right?"

"Uh… yes."

Serafall nodded again, still smiling. "Great to meet you! I'm the Devil King, Serafall Leviathan! But you knew that already! Genshirou Saji, right?"

Saji nodded mutely, to which Serafall replied with a third nod and another smile, before her attention and mood flipped.

The Devil King then jumped off the stage and stalked towards Issei, scowling at the Angel all the while.

Issei, in an attempt at being formal, repeated Saji's action. "A pleasure to meet you again, Lady Levia-"

"Don't try and butter me up, Angel!" Serafall snapped, cutting Issei off. "I know you're up to something, and I'm gonna figure out what! And once I do, you'll pay for hurting my-"

Serafall, however, was interrupted by the loud _bang_ of a door being slammed open. A moment later, Sona Sitri's voice filled the room.

"Saji! What's going on in here?"

"Uh… Sona…" Issei called, rising from his bow. "Could you maybe… get your sister off of me?"

Sona, however, simply froze as soon as the word "sister" left his lips, a rare look of anything other than unflappable calm on her face.

Serafall, on the other hand, immediately raced towards Sona at top speed.

Once the Devil King had placed herself in front of her sister, she began rattling on about how happy she was to see her sister, how mad she was about not being told about open house, how she wanted to let off frustration by _attacking Heaven_ …

Issei covered his ears about the point Serafall started enthusiastically discussing the possibility of sex with her sister.

"Listen…" Sona said, struggling to stay calm and salvage a shred of her dignity, "I am responsible for the entire Student Council here. Family or not, you're going to have to change! And another thing – in case you've forgotten, there's an _Angel_ standing over there listening to you talk about blowing up Heaven! Are you _trying_ to start a war?!"

"Why do you have to be like that?" Serafall asked, her voice suddenly quite sad. "You know that all I want is to be a magical girl! And who cares if I blow up this Angel!"

"You still _cannot_ be dressed like that! And I think Lady Gabriel might care!"

Back and forth the Devil sisters went, Sona growing more embarrassed and upset with every passing word, until a breaking point was finally reached.

"I can't take anymore of this!" Sona cried, turning and running away from her own sister, the Devil King bolting after her.

A moment later, Saji excused himself and ran after the two ladies, leaving Issei alone in the now-empty gymnasium.

 **"Well, at least it hasn't been a** _ **boring**_ **day."**

Issei didn't reply.

* * *

With the parents he cared about having left the school, the rest of Issei's day went smoothly.

The rest of his _school_ day, that is.

* * *

When Issei arrived home, he found Rias seated at his dining room table, face buried in her hands.

Not twenty feet away was TV area, where Issei's parents, Sirzechs and another red-haired man Rias later identified as her father sat. On the TV was video footage of the classes that day.

"Oh, isn't that sweet!" Sirzechs commented as Issei walked by. "Our little Rias is answering the teacher's question! _Oh_ , and she got it right!"

"Issei," Rias whispered, "could you just… I don't know? Run me through with a light sword and end my suffering?"

Issei shook his head, washed in sympathy. "If I could, Rias, I'd help you, but I've got to deal with some stuff… _upstairs_." The brunette's finger pointed towards the ceiling.

Rias just nodded and re-buried her face in her hands.

Taking great care to avoid being noticed, Issei proceeded up the stairs and deposited his books.

A moment later, his cross vanished.

* * *

 _And cut._


	47. Training From the Ace

_Next chapter._

* * *

Issei was rarely happier to reach Heaven's front gate than he was during the Friday of open house. He loved his parents dearly, but that did not mean he liked being a source of entertainment for them.

Once through the golden gates, Issei spread his four wings and took flight towards the records building.

* * *

Issei opened the front door of the records building casually, taking care to not smudge the glass of the door. The records desk behind it stood unmanned, leaving Issei to walk through the fluorescent-lit building without a word from anyone else.

As he strolled between the cubicles, he let out a slow breath. He tried to imagine himself at one of these desks, answering phones and helping to run Heaven and the church's business.

He couldn't decide if it was an attractive proposition or torture incarnate.

Within a minute or two, he had reached the forms room, but it took another minute or two to find the staircase; Mirana hadn't specified _where_ it was, exactly, and as a result Issei was left confused for a short while.

* * *

Slowly, Issei treaded up the stone staircase, the hum and buzz of the office space beneath vanishing further with every inch upwards. What had once been the normal sound of the brunette's soles slapping against the floor began to seem cacophonous.

By the time he reached the top of the stairs, there was no sound at all; even the heavy wooden door did not squeak as Issei carefully pulled it open.

When the Jack of Hearts stepped through the door, he was met by the sight of the largest library he had ever seen.

From what Issei could tell, it extended up at least five stories; a central gap running through the library's floors allowed Angels to fly between the levels easily without having to take the stairs.

Even just in Issei's sight, there were innumerable numbers of shelves, crammed with books, scrolls and other materials the brunette wasn't even sure of the composition of. Dozens of tables were arranged in the spaces between the shelves. There were Angels seated at some of them, some taking notes while others simply read for enjoyment.

The entire place, from the soft, white carpet to the wood-paneled walls, was washed in a golden glow, as though one was reading beneath a pleasant sun.

"Good afternoon."

Issei jumped at those words. His head whipped about for a moment, before settling on a desk seated directly in front of the doorway. Reception, no doubt.

Behind said desk was a brown-haired young woman, no more than eighteen, clad in the sorts of black robes one might expect from a stereotypical librarian.

It made it far easier for Issei to keep his thoughts chaste, at least.

"Err… good afternoon," Issei replied, his tone awkward.

The young woman smiled. "Issei Hyoudou, right?"

"Yeah, that's me…" the Jack said.

"Abigail Canary," the young woman said, smiling. "Raphael's Nine. A pleasure."

"Good to meet you, too," Issei said, beginning to relax.

"I watched you and Nero go at it," Abigail said, still grinning. "I must say, it was quite interesting to watch the Boosted Gear in action, though I _was_ disappointed that you didn't use your Balance Breaker – _that_ would have been useful."

"You know I can't even _use_ my Balance Breaker, right? That "Scale Mail" or whatever it's called?" Issei asked. "I've never managed to come close to accessing it. And what do you mean by "useful"?"

Abigail blinked. "You've _never_ employed your Balance Breaker? Surely your training as an exorcist would have-"

Then, she stopped and shook her head. "My apologies. I forgot you weren't raised in the church, and I don't intend any offense by that. It's just… well, only you and Asia Argento _weren't_ exorcists before becoming Brave Saints, and it tends to slip my mind…"

Issei shrugged. "Not a problem. What did you mean by "useful", though?"

Abigail looked to her right and left, then waved Issei into whisper distance. "I'm… rather interested in the Red and White Dragon Emperor's Longinus. I always have been, ever since I learned about them." She chuckled slightly and her cheeks reddened, obviously embarrassed. "When I found out the Red Dragon Emperor had joined our ranks, well… I may or may not have rolled around on my bed giggling like a little girl." A frown creased her face. "But of course, _no_ , the Queen of Hearts and the Joker had to monopolize your every waking second you were here. And of _course_ you're the one Saint who doesn't live in Heaven full-time."

"I had Sundays off, you know. You could've asked then."

"I work double shifts on Sundays – and whoever's behind the reception desk isn't allowed to leave until their shift ends."

"What, does Lord Raphael just like sticking you here?"

Abigail made a face. "No… I volunteered. Nobody else wanted to do this, and I like the work well enough, but I still wish I hadn't. No getting out of it for a while."

"Oh, dear. Wish I could help you, but… well, I don't spend enough time here for it to make sense."

"Well, maybe it would if you spent more time here," Abigail said, grinning.

"I still have to keep up appearances for my parents. They don't know the truth."

Another shrug. "Maybe you _should_ tell them after the peace conference, at least if things go well. After all, they'd have nothing to worry about at that point – nothing from the Three Factions, at least."

"I'll… well, I'll take it under advisement." Issei shook his head. "Where would I find books on the magic system?"

"Fourth floor. There's practice rooms off to the side. Don't start throwing fireballs around the books, please; it took two weeks to get all the books replaced the last time someone did that..."

* * *

Issei took the stairs up to the fourth floor slowly, thinking over the Nine of Clubs' words carefully.

It was at once an attractive and terrifying proposition. If his parents knew, the brunette wouldn't constantly be trying to keep everything under wraps, a task at which Issei knew himself to not be particularly skilled. And it wasn't as though they could keep him from performing his duties; locking up an Angel with mundane objects was an exercise in futility.

At the same time, however, Issei also did _not_ want his parents to know. Ignorance was the one bliss that he could grant them; he could only imagine having to lay out and explain that their thoughts and demands of him were now secondary to those of a person they did not know. He did not want to have to tell them about the dangers most humans remained oblivious to.

And of course, if he _did_ tell them, it would inevitably lead into the question of _how_ he became an Angel in the first place.

He had no desire to revisit the topic of the night he was skewered through the chest. He doubted he _ever_ would.

* * *

The fourth floor, when Issei reached it, was somewhat quieter than the preceding three floors had been. It was not unoccupied, of course; there was still a smattering of Angels looking over books and scrolls. The floor was, however, somewhat less populated than the previous three.

Issei, not seeing Mirana, instead went to one of the bookshelves and began idly scanning the titles, to see if there might be anything he'd want to look at later.

 _Let's see… "The Use of Water in Spells", "Wind Magic and its Constructed Elements", "The Healing Rays of the Sun"…_

Issei's hand stopped when he came to the last entry along the shelf.

 _"Will of a Holy Fire"?_

His interest piqued somewhat, Issei carefully removed the book from the rack. It wasn't exceptionally thick, to Issei's mild relief as he let it fall open to the first page and began reading.

 _In the study of light and fire elements, we as Angels have long been possessed of a sinful envy to Lord Uriel, commander of the Holy Flames. He has, of course, not been ignorant to this, and has attempted to instruct others in the use of this element; unfortunately, he has been unable to pass his use of this along to another._

 _Holy Flames?_ Issei thought. _Some combination of light and fire magic?_

The brunette couldn't help but smile at the thought. A new technique to combine his light and fire magics was quite the appealing proposition.

Issei was not sure how long he stood there, eyes flying over the text. As it turned out, a combination of light and fire magic was exactly what "pseudo-Holy Fire" was. It also didn't appear to be that difficult to combine the two.

Of course, his fire magic had only been mastered thanks to being in a life-or-death situation, so Issei took this thought with a pinch of salt.

He didn't realize that he'd been snuck up on until he felt a familiar hand tap him on the shoulder.

"So," came Mirana's voice, sliding across his ears, "are you just going to keep your nose buried in that book, or are you going to let me instruct you?"

* * *

After Issei had reluctantly put the book away, whilst making a mental note to come back and continue reading it later, the Ace lead the Jack into a room behind the last row of bookshelves.

The room itself was cubical, completely bare except for a folding chair; the walls, painted white, extended into a space approximately thirty feet by thirty, with a ceiling about twelve feet high.

Mirana positioned herself in the middle of the room, before instructing Issei to stand approximately five feet away from her.

Even when Issei drew close, he could not see even a hint of teasing in the young woman's face; while her countenance was friendly, she was clearly all business.

"Now, Issei," Mirana said, "before we begin, I'd like to impress upon you the overall weakness of the more basic barrier-type magics. Put up the strongest barrier you can."

Issei obeyed, and a moment later, had summoned a barrier stronger than even the one he'd used to defend himself against the Cerberus.

Mirana held her chin for a moment, before nodding. Then, she drew back her fist and struck the barrier with it.

The light barrier shattered the moment her clenched hand collided with it, "fragments" of it falling around Issei as his mouth dropped open.

 _She shattered that thing like it was made of sugar… even the Cerberus couldn't do that…_

The Ace's hand returned to her side. "You see?"

Issei nodded mutely. "Very concise."

Mirana smiled. "Now then, we'll reverse the roles." She raised her palm, and a barrier, this one pure white, formed. "Attempt to break this. Use the Boosted Gear, if you wish."

Issei nodded, summoning the gauntlet. After several minutes of charging it as much as he dared, the brunette nodded once more.

 **"TRANSFER!"**

When Issei's incredibly enhanced fist struck the barrier, however, Issei was left cradling his hand in pain, while the barrier itself sustained no visible damage.

"You feel the difference?" Mirana asked, a slight bit of her teasing personality breaking through.

She was rewarded with a simple, pained "shut up" from Issei.

* * *

As it turned out, the more dedicated barrier-type magics were _far_ more difficult than mastering fire had been. No matter how much effort Issei put into it, he simply couldn't get the barrier to manifest properly. Occasionally, there would be a tiny flicker of light in the _shape_ of the wall he attempted to form, but it never truly materialized.

Despite this, neither Mirana nor Issei was particularly discouraged; both had suffered through the frustrations of learning a new type of magic, and both were prepared to grind through much more than one day's failures.

Unfortunately, however, the holy-based defensive magics were not fire, and the drain on Issei's already unimpressive magical reserves was much greater than flames besides; after barely half an hour, Issei was out of steam, and Mirana called it off.

"Slow progress isn't unexpected," she said as she and Issei left the room. "I'd be much more surprised if you managed to summon the Holy Fortress competently in your first lesson. And taking your magical reserves to near-empty can help build them; it's a lot like working a muscle, in some respects."

She did not, however, leave him be as he'd hoped she would.

Instead, she brought him to the arena.

* * *

Issei gasped in pain as Mirana slammed the flat of her blade into the side of his head for the fifth time that lesson. While the blow was not done with force significant enough to cause major damage, that was small comfort to Issei's rapidly-worsening headache.

Mirana, as it turned out, was just as merciless as Griselda when it came to training him with a sword.

"Your reflexes still aren't fast enough, Issei," Mirana said.

"You've got two swords to work with!" Issei shot back. "It's hardly fair!"

It was true, of course; Mirana had retrieved three practice swords from the armory when they had first arrived; when Issei had expressed confusion over this, Mirana had simply grinned and taken two for herself.

"That's nothing but an excuse," Mirana countered easily. "On the battlefield, fairness counts for very little. If I have two swords, you need to adapt. If I were a spearman or an archer or a rifleman, you would need to adapt. That is the battlefield, Issei Hyoudou – adaptation."

Despite his best efforts, Issei was unable to land even a single strike against Mirana during their entire practice session. Her nimble movements, combined with lightning-fast blade strikes that came seemingly from everywhere, left him completely outclassed against her.

* * *

So it was that Issei Hyoudou arrived home sore, sweating and drained of his energy, and things only got worse when he walked in.

On the couch, next to Sirzechs and Rias' father, was _Issei's_ father.

Completely drunk.

"So I say to him," Issei's father slurred, "Get your magazines outta that box before I burn 'em!"

Sirzechs and the Devil King's father both looked at Issei as he walked in, and promptly burst out laughing.

Rias, meanwhile, was still seated at the kitchen table. Her hair was messy, and it was clear she'd been grabbing at it; she clearly found this as unappealing a situation to be near as Issei.

"I'm going to my room," Issei announced. "If you need me, you know where to find me."

"Can I come with you?" Rias whispered.

For a moment, Issei sat, before looking over at Sirzechs; Issei's father, meanwhile, had begun going off on another tangent. Sirzech's expression was one of extreme amusement.

And when Issei said "Yes", he busted up laughing once more.

"Oh, developed a small crush across boundaries, have we, Issei?"

Evidently, the Devil King wasn't even mildly concerned about Issei's father hearing this; Issei, of course, had to admit that his father was likely too drunk to care.

All the teenage Angel and Devil could do was groan as they made their way upstairs.

* * *

 _And cut._


	48. Each Their Own

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"Rias, I've never been," Issei said, "so I'll ask you – does the lowest level of hell look anything like that?"

"It's… not a bad approximation," Rias groaned.

Issei and Rias, after being utterly embarrassed and humiliated by their relatives, had retreated to the former's room to hide out. Issei sat at his desk, while Rias had taken a place on his bed.

Issei made sure to keep his eyes wandering over the room, avoiding contact with Rias herself; he'd rather be escorting Michael than Azazel, after all.

Issei sighed. "I don't get it. Why do parents love doing this sort of thing so much?"

"Amusement, I guess," Rias said, shrugging helplessly before shaking her head.

"Off that subject, then," Issei said. "Will you be at the peace conference?"

Rias nodded. "Naturally. I have to give the report of what happened between my household and Kokabiel directly to the leadership of the three attending parties. I've already gone over my report with Sona; her role is just to confirm the accuracy of the report."

Issei returned the nod. "I'll be there, too. Lord Michael says that Azazel wants both the Red and White Dragon Emperors in the meeting room."

Personally, Issei was mildly miffed at the continued insistence of that title; he was the Jack of Hearts, damn it, not the Red Dragon Emperor. He did not, however, voice or show this to Rias Gremory.

"So, you'll be Michael's escort?" Rias asked, her voice curious.

Issei shrugged. "Well, me and four other Angels. The Aces of the Four Great Seraphim."

"I see…"

At those words, Issei's eyes settled on Rias. Employing every bit of self-control that he had to keep his eyes on her face, he noticed something off.

She seemed almost… sad?

"Something wrong, Rias?"

Rias bit her lip. "Issei, I've been meaning to ask since the incident, and forgive me if this is a bit personal, but…"

"Yeah?"

"…are you happy? As an Angel, I mean?"

Issei shrugged. "Of course. I mean, it's probably the best thing that ever happened to me."

Rias nodded a third time, and Issei could see a relieved smile come across her face. "That's good… that's good…"

"Why do you ask?" Issei inquired, his face betraying his curiosity.

The red-haired Devil gulped. "Well… umm… Issei, please hear me out on this… but… I sort of…"

Issei's eye arched.

"…I knew that that Fallen Angel was there."

The Angel's lips turned downward in a frown, and a tiny ember of anger began to burn.

"You knew?"

Rias nodded. "Please believe me, Issei. I had _no_ idea what she was trying to do, and I didn't want to act hastily for fear of reopening hostilities between the factions. All the same, you suffered for it, and I'm sorry. I really am."

Issei sighed, looking at the ceiling. The brunette hadn't been lying; other than putting an abrupt end to his dreams of having a harem, becoming an Angel had been an excellent change. Despite all the difficulties, the positives far outweighed the negatives, and the brunette had found his weakened perversity to ultimately be for the better.

That did not change, however, that it had been immediately preceded by the _worst_ moment in his entire life.

 _Don't get angry,_ he tried to reason with himself. _It's not worth it. You're a better person now than you ever were then, and she can't go back and change what she did any more than you can go back and re-handle the Kokabiel situation. The peace conference is in two days, too – you can't disrupt that._

With that thought process, Issei took a long, slow breath. Then, he looked at Rias.

"Water under the bridge, Rias. Let's just move on, shall we?"

Rias nodded yet again, letting out a breath she'd been holding.

"Good to see you two getting along."

Issei and Rias' heads snapped towards the door to find Sirzechs's head poking in.

"How long have _you_ been there?!" Issei and Rias both demanded simultaneously.

"Long enough," the Devil King replied casually, and continued without letting either teen get a word in. "I hope, Issei, you'll back the treaty we'll be trying to create?"

Issei nodded, annoyed at being asked this question a second time.

Sirzechs returned the nod, appreciation in his face. "Good to know." Then that familiar, mischievous smile crawled across his face. "So then, we should probably get the sleeping arrangements sorted out."

Issei yawned. "Yeah, it's getting la- "

The brunette's jaw stopped working when his brain processed what the Devil King had said. ""We"?"

The Devil King nodded, the grin widening. "Your parents have generously given me permission to stay here tonight. And they've even been kind enough to let me split a room with you, Issei! Isn't that great?"

Issei's face contorted into a pained expression, which left Sirzechs chuckling. "I'm glad you agree."

At those words, Issei made a split-second decision. "No, Lord Lucifer, you will not be sharing a room with me tonight. You'll have the room to yourself, because I will not be here tonight."

"Oh? Surely I can't be _that_ gruesome, even at _my_ advanced age!" Sirzechs said, chuckling even more.

"No, that's not the case," Issei said, a smug smile coming across his features. "I'm just a petty, selfish little Angel who isn't keen on sharing his sleeping space."

"Where _are_ you going to sleep, then?"

Issei shot the Devil King a dry, sarcastic look before pointing upwards. "Where do you think?"

Sirzech's grin drooped. "You take all the fun out of trying to get a laugh at your expense, you know that?"

"It's but my holy duty, Lord Lucifer."

"Wait," Rias said, confused, "you have a bed in Heaven?"

Issei gave another sarcastic look. "Where do you think I was sleeping for those two weeks I was gone? A church basement?"

Rias made a sour face, but didn't respond to his sarcasm.

"Then again, how will you explain your little "disappearance"?" Sirzechs said, the grin returning.

"That will be _your_ job, Lord Lucifer," Issei countered easily. "Call it a last act of tension-reduction before the peace conference. I'm not fond of abusing the idea, but Devils _can_ alter human memory, right?"

"Oh, but why would I do that if I receive nothing in exchange?" Sirzechs demanded playfully.

"Your "equivalent exchange" is that you get to sleep alone in a spare room instead of having to share, Lord Lucifer."

Sirzech's mouth opened, before shutting once more. "You've got me there. But even then, are you sure you're allowed to?"

"According to Lady Gabriel and every other Brave Saint's example, I'm free to use my room in First Heaven any time I wish. And her authority over me trumps everybody's but Lord Michael's."

Issei stood. "I'll be off. Good night, you two; please don't break anything, Lord Lucifer."

The brunette assumed the form of a cross, before vanishing a moment later.

* * *

After Issei departed, Rias looked at her brother, a mildly victorious grin on her face.

"Oh, don't _you_ start," Sirzechs said, addressing her as an older brother.

"Start what?" Rias said innocently. "I would never _think_ of causing the Great Devil King Lucifer hardship!"

"Camels," Sirzechs said, tossing a satisfied smirk at Rias, whose cheeks had puffed out and were presently turning as red as her hair.

* * *

When Issei arrived in the Hearts building, he was unsurprised to find the Ace, Queen, Ten and Nine seated at the long table.

What surprised him, however, was the King, standing before her deck; Issei promptly bowed upon seeing her.

"Good evening, Issei," Gabriel said, nodding. "You may rise. Is something the matter? You're not usually here this late."

"To make a long story short, Lady Gabriel, Sirzechs Lucifer is staying in my house tonight and was trying to split my bedroom with me."

"Was he attempting to extract information from you?" Gabriel asked, obviously alarmed. "Was there any malicious intent that you could detect?"

"No," Issei said with a wry grin. "I just didn't feel like sharing."

Asia cracked up laughing at that, while Gabriel's face showed amusement; by contrast, Xenovia did not seem to have any reaction, while Griselda buried her face in her hands.

"At least you're honest," Gabriel said, shrugging, before turning to face her seated Saints once more. "As I was saying… yes, Mirana, you _must_ be present in the conference room."

Only then did Issei take a closer look at the other members of the Hearts deck, and notice the obvious discomfort on Mirana's face.

"But why, my Lady?" the Ace of Hearts asked, obvious fright in her voice. "Griselda, Xenovia, or Asia could represent your deck equally well." She looked at the Jack, then to the King. "Besides that, Issei's going to be there anyways – why do you need _me_?"

Issei was incredibly confused by how Mirana was acting. Every time he had seen the Ace before this, Mirana had appeared a highly confident young woman, who took a special joy in pestering others. Never had she given the slightest hint of something like this.

"Because," Gabriel answered, "the Four Great Seraphim have each agreed to send a representative. Issei is there due to being the Red Dragon Emperor, not due to his Angelic status. And it was agreed that each of our respective Aces would be sent, specifically because of the association of the "Ace" in a card deck with a high value; ergo, it's a way of appealing to the psyche to show that Heaven is very serious about this treaty."

Mirana let out a slow, pained breath. "I… understand, Lady Gabriel. Is there anything else?"

"No," Gabriel said. "I hope you will all take into account what I have told you?"

The four Saints affirmed that they would, while Issei was left standing there, clueless.

"Excellent. I bid you a wonderful evening."

Gabriel formed a cross, then vanished.

* * *

Almost as soon as she had gone, Mirana pushed herself out from her seat and walked down the hall, departing without so much as a word.

"Issei?" Griselda asked, noticing that the brunette was staring after the Ace without a flicker of lust in his eyes. "You're ready for the peace conference, I assume?"

Issei nodded absentmindedly, debating between his two options for a few moments.

Then, without saying anything, he walked down the hall towards the bedrooms.

* * *

As Issei walked down the hallway after the Ace, he momentarily wondered if pestering her was a good idea.

Despite his interactions with her, Issei had to admit that he didn't know Mirana very well. He didn't know what brought this behavior on, or if he could relate to it.

Was he just butting into something that ultimately wasn't his business?

 _I can at least ask her what's wrong. Maybe she could use a sympathetic ear. If she does, I can help her with that. If she doesn't, no harm done._

While not entirely convinced by his own reasoning, Issei went ahead with it, ultimately deciding to risk it.

* * *

Upon reaching the Ace's door, he gently rapped his knuckles on the wood.

He could hear the shifting of fabric against fabric, then muffled footsteps behind the door. A moment after, the door opened.

Mirana Shatarova looked back at him, her face holding none of its usual amusement.

"You, uh… you wanna talk?"

Issei was genuinely surprised when Mirana accepted his invitation.

* * *

Mirana's room was, as expected, quite similar to Issei's in layout; there were a few more personal items, of course, and the room overall looked more "lived-in" than Issei's, but there was little difference besides.

"What's wrong?" Issei asked hesitantly, not having thought his plan out beyond the bare basics. "I've, uh… I've never seen you this way."

Mirana gave Issei a small smile, one completely devoid of humor. "It's nothing major, Issei. Just a small problem I've had for a long, long time."

"You're nervous about the peace conference?"

She shrugged. "I suppose."

"You don't want to be there?" Issei asked, trying to pry information out of Mirana without coming across as cold.

The Ace sighed. "Not really."

"Why not?"

The ash blonde Angel sighed, hands folded in her lap, her pale skin a contrast to her black robes. "I… well… are you familiar with "stage fright"? It's like that."

"You're afraid?"

Mirana rested her chin on a fist, staring at the floor. "I've… never dealt well with large groups of people I don't know. I've tried to get over it, over and over again, but I just _can't_. It's never worked once. I have a reputation in the church for being a bit of a recluse, Issei."

For once, Issei had absolutely no responses. It was as though Mirana had vanished and been replaced by somebody who _looked_ like her, but bore no resemblance to her besides that. There was no trace of the perpetually high-spirited, joke-loving Ace of Hearts he knew in the woman sitting next to him.

Mirana evidently noticed his silence.

"I know," she said, bringing Issei's full attention back to her. "I know it's stupid. I _know_ I sound like a scared little girl right now. You must think it pathetic…"

"I'd be a hypocrite if I did, Mirana."

The Ace turned and looked at him, clearly confused.

Issei returned her gaze. "I've got some things I'm afraid of that are a lot stupider than that could ever be."

"Like what?" Mirana asked, a note of concern in her tone.

Issei sighed, wondering if it was wise to tell her his own insecurity; after all, the last thing he wanted was for it to potentially be passed along and for Lady Gabriel to hear about it. He did not want his own King to be worried about him.

But Mirana had confessed hers to him. It was only fair to grant her a truthful answer in exchange.

"Well… there's that fear of not being able to measure up."

Mirana's head tipped to one side. "What do you mean?"

Issei bit his lip. "You know how nearly all the Brave Saints were exorcists before they were reincarnated?"

The Ace nodded.

"I'm always wondering how I'll _ever_ catch up. You guys are combat veterans. I've been in a grand total of five real fights in my life, and I only won two of them. Watching you and Griselda, I wonder if I can ever get _close_ to that level. Don't get me wrong, I love being an Angel, but I always feel like I'm scrambling. Every time I think I'm getting somewhere, I get thrown another curveball and I'm left feeling like a liability. I mean, I managed to beat Nero, but for all I know, he was holding back or just underestimated me or whatever, and he'd crush me if we went at it again."

He sighed, rather uncomfortable with laying bare his own fears. For months he'd tried to bottle them up, and now here he was, exposing his thoughts for the examination of another, leaving him feeling completely exposed.

"On top of that, everyone else in Heaven already knows how things run, while I'm constantly feeling like I'm missing something. And on top of _that_ , I'm always on eggshells around my parents – like I'll let one thing slip and they'll figure out what's going on."

Issei sighed. "I mean, if I had to explain it in one sentence… I feel like an outsider, you know? Even all this time on. And believe me, I'm just as nervous about this conference as you are, Mirana. Different reasons, maybe, but nervous all the same. Nervous that I'll make some mistake and the whole thing will go horribly wrong. Wouldn't be the first time."

For several seconds, Mirana didn't say anything, processing what her junior Saint had said to her.

Then, she curled an arm around his shoulders.

He felt her fingers on his cheek an instant before she turned his head and pressed her lips against his.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Having obtained some new information on Mirana of canon (which indicates she's quite nervous and shy), this is my (poor) reconciliation with how my fic has so far portrayed her and the canonical version._


	49. The Death Card

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei was frozen, barely comprehending what was happening as the Ace of Hearts kissed him. He didn't even feel her hand leave his cheek, and it wasn't until a few moments after that Issei realized that Ace had wrapped her arms around him.

Once he _had_ realized, he awkwardly returned the hug, even as she kept the kiss intact.

So it was that Issei found himself in the warm embrace of Mirana Shatarova.

* * *

The brunette was clueless how long he and Mirana stayed that way, wrapped in each other's arms. It could have been a few seconds or a few hours and it would have seemed no different to him.

Then, as suddenly as she had initiated it, Mirana broke the kiss and pulled back, a smile on her face.

"Feel a little better now?"

Issei could only stammer out something that sounded like an affirmation, which just made Mirana smile wider.

She squeezed him tighter. "It's nice to know someone else is a bit of a scaredy-cat too…" The Ace suddenly leaned close enough to whisper directly in his ear, her ample chest pressing against Issei's torso in a way that the Jack would later be certain was deliberate; unlike most times, however, Issei was still too surprised at Mirana's sudden affection to feel any lustful temptation from it.

"If it makes you feel better, Issei… I don't see you as anything but my fellow Saint, just the same as the rest of this building's Saints."

"…th-thanks, Mirana."

Issei's mind was whirling; he'd come to the Ace to try and cheer her up, but now it felt as though the roles had been reversed.

Yet it also seemed that he had somehow succeeded in his original objective anyway, without even knowing _how_ he had done it.

* * *

After a few more moments, the two uncoiled themselves from one another, and Mirana smiled at him once more.

To Issei's relief, he could see some of the teasing Ace of Hearts he knew and, whether he admitted or not, quite liked shining through the grin.

"Thank you for your time, Issei… but if you'll excuse me, I ought to wash up. It wouldn't do for one of Heaven's Brave Saints to be filthy when performing her duties, would it?"

"I guess not…" Issei said distractedly, his mind still hazed by her affection.

"Well then, I bid you adieu for the evening. Good night, Issei."

* * *

Issei's reaction of standing and stumbling out the door were done purely on instinct; the Jack's mind was still too cloudy for anything more complex. As he made his way down the hall, back to his room, he had only one thought running through his mind.

"Issei?"

He hadn't even seen Xenovia until he nearly bumped into her. The blue-haired former exorcist seemed to be making her way towards Mirana's room, judging by her position.

"Are you all right, Issei?" the Ten of Hearts asked. "Did something happen?"

"I just kissed her… I just kissed Mirana Shatarova…" Issei mumbled, far more to himself than her. That, however, did not keep Xenovia's mouth from dropping open.

"You kissed Mirana?" Xenovia exclaimed, her voice showing an unusual amount of emotion by raising one whole decibel. Unfortunately, that decibel was more than enough to draw another, less welcome attendant to the conversation – one Issei hadn't noticed as being within his line of sight.

"You did _what?_ "

At that voice, Xenovia instinctively stiffened before walking towards her own room as quickly as possible.

For his part, the Jack was still shocked enough that Griselda grabbing his cheeks didn't raise any alarm.

"You _kissed Mirana?_ " Griselda demanded. Her voice was still controlled, but there was obvious anger seeping through.

"…yeah…" Issei mumbled, his mind more focused on the memory of the sweetness of the Ace's lips than the steadily-angering Queen of Hearts.

After a moment, Griselda released his face and stormed past him, towards Mirana's room.

* * *

Mirana Shatarova felt at least a bit better after her small indulgence with Issei. While she still felt that cursed nervousness over the whole event, knowing that the Jack of Hearts shared it, albeit for different reasons, did an odd wonder for her mood.

The Ace of Hearts, of course, was no fool, and could tell that Issei's head had been left spinning by her affection. It was then, perhaps, not really a surprise that less than a minute after Issei departed that the Queen of Hearts threw the door open.

" _Mirana_."

At those words, the ash blonde young woman took a seat at her desk and prepared to weather the storm.

"Yes, Griselda?" she replied with a raised eyebrow.

"You let him _kiss_ you?"

"No, I did not," Mirana said matter-of-factly. "I kissed _him_."

Mirana was unimpressed by the frustrated and angry look that crawled across Griselda's face at those words. "If it means anything, I didn't slip him my tongue."

" _Why_ would you do that?" Griselda snapped. "He does not need the temptation!"

"I kissed him because I wanted to," Mirana said, shrugging. "A display of affection, nothing more and nothing less. And he certainly seemed to enjoy it."

"I have little doubt he did. That does not change that your actions were not necessary!"

"No, they weren't," Mirana said, uncharacteristic irritation entering her voice. "No more necessary than you coming over here to snap at me for kissing my fellow Saint. A kiss is not enough to make you fall."

"Why do you insist on tempting him like this?" the Queen of Hearts said, exasperated. "Every time he seems to be overcoming it, your teasing sets him right back to square one and undoes all his progress. And putting that aside, unless you plan to pursue him yourself, that sort of intimacy seems _far_ too close for mere affection!"

"And if I _do_ intend to try and win his heart, Griselda?" Mirana asked. "What then, hmm?"

"I would _say_ that I feel Issei is too young for that right now."

The Ace of Hearts shrugged. "He's seventeen, Griselda, very nearly an adult. We were slaying Devils and Fallen Angels before we were teenagers."

"I still feel-"

"Oh?" Mirana interrupted, her mischievous grin crawling across her face. "Do I detect a hint of _jealousy_?" The grin widened. "What, worried that you'll lose him to someone else? It's obvious that Irina Shidou likes him, too. You should hurry before some other woman gets him!"

Griselda Quarta was a powerful woman, but no amount of strength could undo the web Mirana had easily spun around her. Unwilling to give her friend any ammunition, she promptly spun on her heels and stormed out.

The accusation was, of course, another tease by Mirana; Griselda cared for Issei as she might a younger brother. A troublesome, lecherous little brother with a heart of pure gold.

* * *

The next morning, it was made very clear to Issei that whatever that kiss had meant to Mirana, it wouldn't result in her going any easier on him.

If anything, she was even tougher on him than before. That, or Issei's skull was still tender from the bashing it received the previous day. Either way, he was crying for mercy before lunch had even rolled around.

"No, Issei," Mirana said, smiling innocently. "No mercy. You won't be shown any on the battlefield. The more you suffer here, the less you'll suffer out there."

Issei groaned as she came at him again with her twin blades.

* * *

"Well, you look like you've been through it," Dulio said, before shooting a wry look at Mirana. "I thought you were trying to train him, not re-enact the Kokabiel incident."

They were seated in the main gathering hall, eating a calm lunch together with Dulio before Mirana dragged Issei back out to the practice field. Issei had been _quite_ grateful for the chance to get away from Mirana's blades for a while.

"As I said to him," Mirana shot back, "the more you suffer in training, the less you'll suffer in combat."

"Well, it seems Lord Michael thinks he's suffered enough for one day. He told me to tell you two to stop for the day."

Issei breathed a sigh of relief, while Mirana's face twisted into a scowl.

"That's a waste of perfectly good time that could be used to refine his skills further."

Heaven's Joker raised an eyebrow at the Ace of Hearts. "Losing… what, four-and-a-half, five hours? That won't break his training regimen. And it's Lord Michael's orders – not mine. He says that Issei should be left in decent shape during the peace conference. There's some worry that other groups may decide to attack during it. I don't know what would possess them to try, given who's in attendance, but I suppose basic critical thinking is something not everyone can aspire to."

"Who would be against peace?" Issei asked, nervousness swelling in his gut.

"From what I know," Dulio said after inhaling several more bites of food, "there's some Devils in the Underworld who _really_ don't like the current administration's way of doing things. I don't know the specific details, but they seem to see the current Satans as not deserving of the title, and they _despise_ reincarnated Devils."

Mirana and Issei looked at each other, then back at Dulio; each could see that the other did _not_ like the sound of all this.

"Anyway," Dulio continued, "let's get off that grim subject. After all, even if they do decide to attack, two Devil Kings, Azazel and Michael are all in attendance – and they're all on the side of peace. We should be fine."

Issei swallowed, trying to quash his stirring fears beneath the weight of that argument.

Then, he realized that Dulio had said _two_ Devil Kings.

"Uh, Dulio? I know Sirzechs is going to be there, but… who's the other Devil King?"

"The current Leviathan, from what I hear," Dulio replied, his mouth half-full.

Issei's face turned white.

"Something wrong, Issei?" Mirana asked.

"Lord have mercy…" Issei muttered before he explained himself further. "Lady Leviathan hates me."

"Why?" Dulio demanded, obvious concern in his voice.

Issei leveled a deadpan look at the Joker. "Because I'm an Angel who exists in the same town as her little sister. That's literally the only reason. Her little sister and I are actually on decent terms."

Dulio blinked, before burying his face in his hand. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Unfortunately."

Mirana, having been silent throughout this, began laughing. "Oh, Issei, aren't you just the _popular_ one?"

"I don't even want to know what Sirzechs is doing to my room right now," Issei said dryly.

Dulio sighed. "Now then, Issei, if you'd not sidetrack me once more, I can tell you what I actually wanted to tell you before."

Issei looked at the blonde young man. "What?"

"Come with me after we finish up here, won't you?"

The Jack looked towards Mirana, who shrugged in implicit permission.

"Okay."

* * *

After the three finished, Issei did just that, while Mirana returned to the Hearts building, ostensibly to take a nap.

The Jack and Joker, meanwhile, took off towards another building, the former following the latter's lead.

When they once more let their feet touch the ground, Issei found himself in front of a building he'd yet to enter.

"Hey," the Jack said, looking towards Dulio, "isn't this where Lord _Michael's_ Brave Saints live?"

Dulio simply nodded at him, a half-grin on his face.

* * *

The building, as expected, was laid out very similarly to Gabriel's Saints building. As Issei strode down the hall beside Dulio, towards the central hall, he began to pick up the sound of light chatter between several individuals.

Upon emptying out into the room, Issei's hearing was confirmed upon the sight of Griselda, Xenovia and a male Angel Issei didn't recognize.

"Ah, the Joker returns!" said the man upon noticing Dulio. He was clearly, even while seated, extremely tall, with a thick build and a mop of black hair atop his head.

The Angel, after a moment, nodded at the Jack standing by Dulio's side. "Issei Hyoudou, Jack of Hearts, right?" The man's voice was deep, almost as deep as Raphael's.

Issei sighed at going through _this_ song-and-dance yet again. "Yep. That's me. And you are?"

"Oh, don't sound so excited, Issei," Dulio said, in a dry, deadpan tone that was no disguise for a blatant disciplining by Heaven's Joker.

"Finn O'Leary," the Angel said, not seeming to care about Issei's unenthusiastic response. "Queen of Spades."

Issei slightly tipped his head to one side, causing Finn to break into a wry grin. "And yes, I've heard _all_ the jokes by now."

"At least a quarter of which came from me," Griselda said, a smirk on her face.

"Don't overestimate yourself. It's more like a fifth."

"It is no more than what should be expected as the only male Queen in Heaven."

"I can still beat you in a fight, sister."

As the two continued to snark at each other, Issei looked at Xenovia, then at Dulio; both had buried their faces in their hands.

 _And she gets on_ _ **me**_ _about being immature?_

* * *

After a few moments, it became obvious that Dulio had lost his patience.

This was mostly due to the enormous volume of ice that enveloped everything in the room but the warm bodies. As Issei's teeth began chattering, he looked at Dulio.

The Joker, however, was focused on the two eldest Saints seated at the table.

"If you two want to try to out-sarcasm each other, that's fine. But don't do it here and now. We have the celebration of one of our newest Saint's reincarnation to enjoy, do we not?"

Having served its purpose, the ice vanished.

"Who?" Issei asked, before he recalled what Michael had said to him. "Oh, Irina's being made a Saint today, isn't she?"

"She doesn't know yet," Finn said. "Lord Michael just thought you and Xenovia, her old friends, and Griselda, as one of her teachers, would want to be here to enjoy the moment. Speaking of which…" The Queen of Spades stood. "I need to go retrieve her. Dulio, you can contact Lord Michael."

The Queen of Spades disappeared down the hall the same moment Dulio vanished into a cross.

* * *

Less than a minute later, Finn returned, Irina following behind.

"Finn? What's going on?" Then, she spotted her old friend; a moment later, Issei found Irina not three paces away. "Issei! You were awesome fighting Nero! And you're going with Lord Michael to the peace conference, right?"

"Yep," Issei replied, nodding as he did so.

"Oh, you're lucky," the chestnut-haired girl said. "I wish I could accompany the leader of the Angels on such a holy mission… to achieve true peace between all would be wonderful!" She shook her head. "It's funny… I used to think of Devils as my enemies, but after what happened in Kuoh…"

"You're not so sure anymore?" Issei inquired, leaving Irina to nod. "While I wish I could be going with you, I'll be praying for your success!"

"Perhaps a prayer won't be necessary."

Every head in the room jumped towards the head of the table, towards the unmistakable sound of Michael's voice.

A moment later, a pair of golden crosses appeared, one larger than the other. From the smaller one, of course, stepped the returning Dulio.

From that larger cross stepped Michael, the leader of Heaven and the King of Spades.

Every other person in the room, sans Dulio, was immediately in a deep bow.

"Rise, all of you," came Michael's voice, warm and friendly as ever. "And Irina Shidou, please step forwards."

Irina, still in shock, obeyed, walking slowly towards the leader of Heaven until she was a few feet away. "L-Lord Michael? Did I do something wrong?"

"Of course not," Michael replied, closing the distance and laying a hand on her shoulder. "Now, you wish to join the Aces and Issei in accompanying me into the peace conference meeting room?"

"Yes, Lord Michael, I would. I would consider it a great honor to stand beside the leader of Heaven as he forges an alliance between the three Great Powers."

Michael smiled at those words, before removing his hand, reaching into his robes and withdrawing a familiar box. "If that is the case, child, then I must ask: Would you be willing to accept my offer? To become my Ace and the newest Brave Saint?"

The question was, of course, almost unnecessary; Irina's face was twisted into an expression of utter joy and awe.

"Yes, Lord Michael! I would accept your gift with the greatest generosity I can possibly muster! It would be my honor to be ranked as a member of your deck!"

Clearly having expected this result, Michael merely chuckled slightly. "If that is the case, child, then I will happily take you as one of my Brave Saints. I am truly blessed to have you."

With that, Michael drew out the card and pressed it against Irina's chest.

An instant later, it vanished, and the familiar motion of the newest Saint grasping at their skull made its presence clear.

Once Irina had removed her arms, Michael whispered something in her ear, which Issei suspected were instructions for manifesting her wings and halo.

This suspicion was confirmed a moment later when a pair of white-feathered wings and a circle of glowing light appeared above Irina's head. After a few seconds, Irina wordlessly embraced Michael.

"Well then," Dulio said, a smile having come across his face. "Welcome to the deck of- mffh!"

In the instant he had taken to start saying it, Griselda had raced up behind him and clamped her hand across his mouth; while Dulio could have dodged away easily, he opted instead to simply send a grumpy look towards the Queen of Hearts. She, in return, gave him a smug smile.

"Not this time, Dulio."

The Jack chuckled, before turning his head towards Dulio. After meeting his eye, Issei winked at him, then turned back towards Irina.

"Welcome to the deck of the Brave Saints, Irina!"

" _Issei!_ "

* * *

 _And cut._


	50. So It Begins

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei chuckled at the angry and frustrated response from Griselda. Finn, meanwhile, just shook his head.

"You know you've just mad her mad, right?"

"Yep," Issei replied.

"And you know that the next time she trains you, it's going to be a lot worse?"

"Yep."

"Oh, come now," Michael said, arms still around Irina's shoulders. He smiled. "A small joke among Saints is no harm."

"Lord Michael," said Griselda, "that pun has no place in any decent conversation."

"I believe _God_ determines what's decent, Griselda," Issei said smarmily. "And Lord Michael seems to be in full support of our little joke, so…"

"How does ten miles of running the day after the peace conference sound, Issei?" Griselda shot back. "Perhaps fifteen? Twenty?"

Issei shut up.

"As I thought."

* * *

After a few more seconds, Irina extracted herself from Michael's arms, spread her wings and made a pose that would have made their childhood selves proud.

"Now I'm an Angel, too!" she squealed, looking at both Xenovia and Issei as she said this. "That makes all three of us!"

Issei grinned. "I guess this was just inevitable."

Michael chuckled, before he shook his head. "Now then, Issei – I have something I must discuss with you."

The Jack looked to the leader of Heaven. "Yes, sir? What is it?"

"I have received confirmation of where this conference will take place, and its location is most pertinent to you."

"Where's that, then?"

"Kuoh Academy – your school, from what I understand."

Issei shot a quizzical look at Michael, prompting the Seraph to clarify.

"It was the choice of the Devil King Sirzechs Lucifer. He says it is a lovely place and a fine area to discuss peace."

"Because of course…" Issei said. "Thank you for the information, Lord Michael. Do you want me to meet you there tomorrow night?"

Michael shook his head. "I think it best if we all arrive together, as a party. Though, of course, there will be other Angels besides ourselves in attendance who will arrive early, the Aces, yourself and I will be the only ones in the meeting room itself."

Issei remembered what Dulio had said over lunch, and nodded. "So they'll be standing guard, essentially?"

"Precisely. My Joker, however, will not be in attendance. In my absence, he will be standing in my place as one of Heaven's defenders – just in case of the unlikely event that another group attempts to strike Heaven whilst we are gone. He _is_ one of the strongest among our ranks."

Issei, for his part, wasn't so sure that was a good idea, but he kept quiet and nodded. "As you wish, Lord Michael. What time will the conference be?"

"Approximately nine-forty in the evening, local time. Meet us in Zebel before nine o' clock."

Issei nodded again. "Understood, Lord Michael."

With that, Michael wished Irina well and vanished into a cross.

* * *

As soon as Michael left, Irina pounced on Issei and then Xenovia, hugging each in a vice-grip.

"Oh, I'm so _excited_!" she said, giggling as she bounced up and down. "My very first mission in Heaven and I'll be accompanying Lord Michael himself!"

Finn raised an eyebrow. "Not to be a downer, Irina, but if things go well, it'll mostly be you five standing around while Lord Michael does all the negotiating."

Irina shrugged. "Who cares? It's a historic mission and I get to be right at the center!"

The Queen of Spades grinned. "Well, I suppose a positive attitude's a good thing." He turned to look at Griselda. "Mirana still nervous?"

The Queen of Hearts nodded. "Though it seems Issei has helped calm her nerves a bit."

She shot the brunette a dirty look.

Issei, for his part, shrugged. "No shame over here."

"And that itself makes it all the worse, Issei."

Irina looked to Griselda and then back to Issei, hair swinging as she did so. "What makes what worse?"

Griselda sighed. "Mirana kissed Issei yesterday, and if says he did not enjoy it, then he is lying through his teeth."

Finn and Dulio both started laughing at that, while Irina's face quickly began turning bright red.

"Into older women, are we, Issei?" Finn called, leaving Issei to shrug.

"Mirana's a beautiful woman, and she gave me one heck of a first kiss. And besides, we're Angels – what's a few years difference between people who'll live thousands?"

Griselda chewed her lip, as she recalled Mirana using an almost identical argument just a few months earlier.

"But she _didn't_ give you your first kiss!" Irina suddenly interjected, her voice somewhat louder than necessary. "That was _me_!"

Issei turned his head to look at the chestnut-haired Ace of Spades, eyebrow raised. "You sure about that, Irina? I think I'd remember something like that."

Irina's hands balled into fists, while an adorable pout overtook her face. "When we were kids! You were asleep and I… I stole a peck!"

The Jack looked at Irina, then at Xenovia, Griselda, Dulio and finally Finn.

"Okay, then…" he answered her, not having a response prepared for his old friend. "I… appreciate the thought, Irina. Thanks?"

Irina shot him an annoyed look, but she wished him well before trotting back down the hall to her room.

* * *

"Uh, okay, then…" Issei said awkwardly. "Hate to cut this short, but… I ought to get going."

"Where?" Dulio asked.

"The library. There was a book in there… "Will of a Holy Fire", I think? Something about combining fire and light. Seems like a pretty logical next step to take, I think."

"You just don't slow down, do you?" Finn commented. "You master light, go get Michael to train you on fire and then immediately want to learn how to combine them?" The Queen of Spades grinned. "Glad to have you with us, Issei."

Issei nodded, before turning and walking out of the building.

* * *

After the flight to the records building, the usual walk past the cubicles and up the steps to the library, he was greeted by a red-haired man behind the counter.

"Afternoon," the library receptionist greeted him, his voice unenthusiastic. Clearly, this person did _not_ enjoy this job. Even as Issei looked the man over, the boredom was evident in his freckled face.

"Afternoon," Issei replied. "And you are?"

"Ridley Ashworth. Raphael's Eight."

"Ah. Good to meet you. Issei Hyoudou –"

"Jack of Hearts, I know," Ridley said, dry irritation evident in his voice. "You need something?"

"No."

"Then why'd you try to start a conversation?"

"Was trying to be polite," Issei replied, miffed at the Eight's bluntly unfriendly response.

"If I'm sitting in this chair, the most polite thing to do is not say anything."

"Real fond of this job, aren't you?" Issei muttered as he walked away. _Prick._

* * *

The fourth floor was no more busy than it had been when he had first seen it; as a result, Issei was left with plenty of space and time to look for the book. This, ultimately, took far longer than intended; evidently, the book had either been filed wrong or someone else had put it back in the wrong place.

After finally locating _Will of a Holy Fire_ , Issei took it to one of the practice rooms, sat down in the chair, and flipped it open to about where he remembered being before.

And almost immediately, something slid out of the pages.

For a moment, Issei blinked as he gazed at the object on the floor, only realizing what it was a few seconds later.

Once he did, Issei reached down and picked up the piece of folded, brown parchment.

Upon opening it, the brunette was confronted by words written in a language he couldn't comprehend, which used a writing system he had never seen.

 _The heck?_

After a moment, he shrugged to himself, re-folding the paper and slipping it into his pocket. He reasoned that he could just ask Michael about it later; for now, his focus was on the Holy Fire.

* * *

As it turned out, Issei was quite right to take the idea that using Holy Fire would be easy with a pinch of salt.

While he was no longer burning himself, the Jack found the actual _combination_ process extremely difficult. The light and flames simply did not want to mix together; he would invariably end up with a palm full of fire _or_ light, never a combination of the two.

The book, at least, claimed this was to be expected, and that it was simply a matter of practice.

* * *

When Issei had finished, he returned the book to where he had found it and left for home.

If he had been two minutes slower, he might have found out what that note was for when another Angel came by and picked up the same book.

* * *

The next morning, Issei awoke to a profound nervousness in his chest. He swallowed, staring up at the ceiling, having not yet removed himself from the warmth of his bedsheets.

 _Today's the day of the peace conference…_

Issei's stomach flip-flopped. He was hopeful for the end result, but he was profoundly frightened by the process of getting to it.

* * *

The day went by very slowly, Ddraig occasionally dropping dry bits of advice.

As the sun slipped below the horizon, Issei watched the clock, each minute feeling like an hour. Time dragged on and on as he checked the clock constantly, watching the minutes tick by, slowly approaching 8:50 P.M.

In his nervousness, Issei began pacing back and forth across his room. Often, he would be left feeling as though an enormous amount of time had passed, only to find that barely a few minutes had gone by.

Once time had finally drawn to what he was awaiting, the Jack of Heart took one last deep breath.

 _Here we go…_

Then, he vanished into a cross.

* * *

Issei didn't bother stopping at any floor other than Sixth Heaven; he wanted to get this business over and done with as fast as possible.

When he arrived, however, he was surprised to find only Michael there.

"Good evening, Issei. You may rise."

"Good evening, Lord Michael," Issei returned as he rose. "Am I late?"

"No, in fact," Michael said. "In fact, you're a bit early. That, however, works to our favor."

"How so, Lord Michael?"

"I want you to go down to First Heaven – change into more formal attire. The sort of clothes worn by my Joker will do fine. Retrieve Ascalon, but do not remove it from its scabbard and do not reveal the blade's identity."

Issei nodded. "Understood, sir."

* * *

So it was that Issei found himself back in his room in First Heaven once more; he was growing more fond of this place by the day.

After a few minutes, he had followed the Seraph's command and changed; the clothes were quite comfortable, just the way he remembered them. Experimentally, he tried to manifest his wings.

They phased through the fabric without issue.

After adding Ascalon's scabbard to his outfit, hanging at the perfect height for him to draw it at a moment's notice, he returned to Zebel.

"Better now, Lord Michael?"

"Infinitely so. You look a proper representative of Heaven." Michael smiled. "Now then, we simply await the arrival of the others."

* * *

Within two minutes and exactly on time, the Ace of Clubs arrived. Once given permission to stand, he took notice of Issei.

"You look fairly nice in those, Issei. You ought to clothe yourself that way more often – I think this style of dress suits you."

Issei gave him an awkward thanks; what response was he supposed to have to a thirty-year-old man complimenting his style of dress?!

* * *

Not long after that, Mirana joined them, dressed equally formally as anyone else. She, on the other hand, said nothing, appearing instead to be trying to calm herself.

Almost immediately after her, Irina and Nero were added to the mix; Nero's injuries had, as promised, healed completely.

Across Nero's back, an enormous, two-handed broadsword lay strapped. Its coloration was exceptionally simple, with a silver blade and gold handle.

Issei pointed to it. "That's Arondight?"

Nero nodded. "Arondight. And… Issei?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm… I'm sorry. About the stuff I said to you on Thursday. It was… inappropriate. Over the line. You beat me fair and square. I'm sorry."

Deethelm and Mirana's eyes both went wide as they stared at Nero. Was the Ace of Diamonds… _apologizing_?

Issei, for his part, shrugged. "Not a big deal. You didn't exactly try to take my limbs off – and at this point, I'm not too offended by words."

Nero just tipped his head to the side in response. "So…?"

Issei sighed. "What I'm saying is that you're forgiven. Let's move on, shall we? We've got a peace conference to get to, don't we?"

Michael nodded. "You all know our destination?"

After filling in everyone but Issei and Irina, the group assumed the shapes of holy crosses and vanished.

* * *

When they reappeared, they found themselves within the school grounds, but not within the meeting room.

"You're sure it was here, Lord Michael?" Issei asked.

"Indeed I am, Issei."

"Was it indoors?"

"Of course. We agreed to hold the peace meeting in the "old student council building" – I was thinking you might know where that is?"

Issei nodded. "Follow me."

* * *

The half-dozen Angels set off across the grounds, walking behind the Jack of Hearts.

After a few minutes of walking, they entered a building and went up two flights of stairs, before Issei pulled open a door.

 _Looks like we've got the right place…_ Issei thought.

This thought, of course, was triggered by the room's inhabitants.

In the center of the otherwise-barren room was a table with four chairs, of which three were filled. In one chair sat Sirzechs Lucifer, dressed in the same full mantle he had been wearing when Issei first met him. Next to him sat Serafall Leviathan, who was dressed in the same green dress as the first time they had met and currently giving him the evil eye. Behind the two Devil Kings stood their younger sisters and their peerages.

As he walked in, he took a quick scan of the peerage members present – there was Kiba, Koneko, Akeno and Rias… and behind her was a black-haired boy Issei hadn't seen before.

 _Did she take a new piece recently?_

The Student Council, on the other hand, looked no different than he remembered it being months ago.

Meanwhile, across from Sirzechs sat the Fallen Angel leader they called Azazel – he was dressed just the same as Issei remembered as well.

Behind _him_ was only one other person – a silver-haired boy, dressed in a leather jacket and black pants.

After Michael took a seat in the final remaining chair, the Angels in his entourage fanned out to stand behind him.

Next to Issei stood Mirana, who had begun shaking very slightly; it was more obvious than ever that she did _not_ want to be here.

In an attempt to cheer her up, and unable to do anything else, Issei took her hand in his. This did, at least, have something like the desired effect as Mirana's palm tensed in his own, squeezing it like a stress-relieving toy.

"Well then," Sirzechs said. "Now that all the participants have gathered… let the summit commence."

* * *

 _And cut._

 _And so we commemorate 50 chapters._

 _On another note, I was reading back through to keep some consistency… and I noticed a point where Lord Raphael as "grumbling that he didn't answer" Issei's prayer. Maybe I should get started on that idea sometime…_


	51. It Goes Wrong, to No One's Surprise

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

The first order of business, as it turned out, was to reiterate events that had already happened, primarily for the benefit of Azazel; Rias had, as acting governor had to fill out her own report on the incident, which covered the events pertinent to the discussion. Her abbreviation ran from the moment the two had received phone calls from Issei, to their meeting with the exorcists (Issei glowed internally when Rias explicitly noted that _he_ had been the one to keep things from blowing up), the first incident with Raynare, the attack on Irina by Kokabiel, then the final battle with Kokabiel gone horribly awry.

Issei winced as he remembered Kokabiel's sneering face.

"The rest of the details regarding the incident between Kokabiel and my household can be found in my official report," Rias finished. A moment later, Sona followed up:

"As a witness, I, Sona Sitri, confirm the veracity of the report given by Lady Gremory."

"Great job, ladies!" Serafall said happily. "Great job, Sona!"

Issei could see the sweat roll down Sona's face even at the distance he was standing.

"That will be all, thank you," Sirzechs said. "Perhaps the governor-general of the Fallen Angels would like to share his opinion of their report?"

Azazel shrugged. "Kokabiel went rogue, therefore my thoughts on the incident are irrelevant."

"So he acted entirely on his own?" Michael asked knowingly.

"Well, he never had my permission, if that's what you're asking," Azazel replied, a sarcastic grin on his face. "But something tells me the damn fool wouldn't have tried to destroy the whole town if he knew I was staying here. I've grown quite fond of this quaint little place."

"Try and stay on topic, if you please," Sirzechs said.

Azazel pointed at the silver-haired young man standing behind him. "I sent the White Dragon Emperor in to resolve the issue, and the culprit is frozen stiff in the lowest level of Hell. He won't bother you again."

At those words, Issei's eyes snapped over to the teen in black, his palm unconsciously tensing around Mirana's.

 _This guy's the White Dragon Emperor?_

A moment later, the White Dragon Emperor noticed his stare and began returning it, smirking all the while. After a few seconds, Issei broke the stare and shook his head.

 _Focus, Issei… focus…_

"What I find most troubling about the attack itself is his motivation," Michael said. "It seems he was rather dissatisfied with the status quo."

Azazel nodded. "Yeah, the war ending halfway through really pissed him off. What he wanted was perpetual combat – but at this late stage in the game, I have _no_ interest in a war."

Perhaps Issei had been imagining it, but he would swear the White Dragon Emperor's lips had turned downwards ever so slightly at those words.

"The seeds of discontent have been sown…" murmured Serafall.

Azazel chuckled in response. "Bad behavior isn't exclusive to my faction."

"Again, I ask that we stay focused on the matter at hand," Sirzechs said, mild irritation entering his voice. "After all, that _is_ why we've convened here."

"Spare the verbosity, won't you?" Azazel said, his tone dry. "Let's just make peace and be done with it. That's the purpose of this grand summit, isn't it? Of course it is." The leader of the Fallen Angels leaned back in his chair. "Our perpetual three-way stalemate's getting rather old and hardly doing this world any favors. I assume we're all in agreement on that?"

Heads nodded around the room.

"We have a… complication, however," Azazel continued. "Once again, it's not even our Three Powers – but these forces are equally, if not more destructive. I refer, of course, to the Red and White Dragon Emperors."

Eyes turned to both Issei and the White Dragon Emperor whose name the former didn't know.

"I'd like to hear their thoughts."

The White Dragon Emperor took the lead, shrugging his shoulders. "I just want to fight someone as strong as me." His voice was a bored, disinterested monotone; evidently he cared nothing for being here.

Issei took careful note of that.

"Yes," Azazel said, chuckling, "but you can still find a lot of powerful opponents without having a war."

"I suppose…"

The Jack of Hearts did _not_ like the tone that his opposite used to say those words. It sounded resigned, annoyed, and aggravated rather than accepting.

Azazel, meanwhile, nodded. "And you, Red Dragon Emperor?"

Issei took a deep breath.

 _Here goes nothing_ …

"What's it say about the previous wielders of the Boosted Gear that you even _need_ to ask me that question? I want peace more than almost anything else. I've been allowed to live in this town because of the generosity of Lord Lucifer and Lady Leviathan."

Issei nodded to them as he said each of their names; Sirzechs responded with a nod of his own, while Serafall's face screwed up.

The Jack turned back to face the rest of the table. "In that time… the Devils and I here have constantly been trying not to tread on each other's toes. I think I can speak for all of us when I say that it's been incredibly annoying. All that stalemate did was constantly leave me and them on edge. And on the larger scale, it's like you said, Azazel. Nobody's gaining anything from it – all we're doing is passing the lines in the sand on to the next generation, and for what?"

Issei exhaled. "So, like I said, I'm fully behind this peace treaty."

Michael and the other Brave Saints accompanying him smiled, while Sirzechs and Azazel gave pleased nods.

"Well," Azazel said, "I suppose it's nice to know that at least _one_ Dragon Emperor has their eyes on the bigger picture. Though… I have to wonder how much of that is motivated by the woman standing next to you."

Issei's eyes flashed over to Azazel, then to Mirana; the former was grinning, the latter was clearly embarrassed.

"Oh?" Michael said, noticing the position of Mirana and Issei's hands and taking up a mischievous grin. "Should I be concerned, Issei? Or perhaps happy for an engagement between Saints?"

* * *

There was no warning, no alarm, no indication that things were about to get ugly.

All that happened was that everyone in the room felt power wash over them, and for a few moments, there was silence as the room tried to figure out what had happened or what might have caused it.

"Sona? Sona!"

All eyes darted to the female Devil King, who had stood up and was now grabbing Sona by the shoulders. This action, as Issei well knew, should have left Sona incredibly embarrassed and struggling to pull free.

Instead, the younger Sitri sister was still and motionless as a plank of wood.

In fact, out of the younger Devils in the room, the only one moving was Kiba, the blonde Devil looking back and forth in confusion.

"Lord Lucifer, what's going on?" he asked.

Azazel had, in the meantime, stood from his seat and pulled back the curtain covering the window.

"Looks like a terrorist attack," the Governor-General said casually. "A whole horde of magicians." He pulled the curtain back all the way and set it so it remained open. "And it looks like the rest of our forces are frozen as well. Any idea what this is about, Sirzechs?"

The crimson-haired Devil King's teeth clenched. "They must have gotten to my sister's Bishop. He's sealed in the old school building on the other side of the campus – and from what I can tell, these magicians have shut off our ability to teleport."

Only when Azazel moved from the window to address the Devil King did Issei get a proper view of what was going on outside – and what he saw made his stomach flip.

Dozens upon dozens of people in odd robes were floating through the sky, some upside-down. The sight would have been amusing if they weren't firing blasts of magical energy towards the helpless frozen Angel, Fallen Angel and Devil guards stationed around the school building.

Azazel sighed, and without even looking, raised his hand.

Through the glass, Issei could see an enormous barrier come up, preventing the magicians from striking them or anyone else. The brunette sighed with relief, and looking over at the other Saints in the room, he could similar expressions across the four of them.

"Now then, Sirzechs, what's this about your little sister's Bishop?"

"Gasper Vladi," the Devil King said quickly. "He's a dhampir and the owner of the Sacred Gear "Forbidden Balor View". He couldn't control it, so for both his own sake and others Rias sealed him until she would be strong enough to help him control it."

"Forbidden Balor View?" Irina asked, beating Issei to the punch by fractions of a second. "What's that do?"

"It freezes anyone or anything that the user is looking at - in theory. It seems the magician's influence has boosted his power and frozen most people at this summit in time."

"Then how are _we_ still moving?" Nero and Kiba demanded simultaneously.

Azazel took the reins to answer that question, and began by pointing out Nero, Irina and Kiba. "You and her," he said, addressing Nero, "have Holy Swords - they're what's protecting you from the effects, I'd guess." He shot a glance at Kiba. "You're being protected by your Holy-Demonic sword, I'd assume." His gaze spun next to Issei. " _Y_ _ou_ are protected by your dragon, and I'm guessing that holding that lovely lady's hand spread the effect to her, as well."

Issei and Mirana each promptly turned a shade of red and broke their grasps.

"As for _you_ ," Azazel continued, looking Deethelm over, "I'd guess you just out-power him."

The governor-general's eyes went back to Sirzechs. "You said this kid's a dhampir?" Azazel asked, before grinning. "Perfect."

Sirzechs was left confused. "What do you mean, "perfect"? It's obvious that those magicians have broken the seals and let themselves in – and now they're exploiting his power to attack us. How is any of that "perfect"?"

"He's a dhampir. That's the "perfect" part of this. The not-perfect part is the problem of the barriers that are preventing teleportation – keeps us from just tossing the Red Dragon Emperor over there. They must've had help setting that up, though – magicians like what are out there aren't capable of locking down even _our_ teleportation spells. Who betrayed us, I wonder?"

"What do you need _me_ for?" Issei asked.

"We need _you_ ,"Azazel said, "to get into that old school building, free the dhampir boy from the magicians and feed him your blood. The blood of the Red Dragon Emperor should give him a small power jump – and by doing that, give him a bit more control over his power. Just a quick lick should be enough."

"We cannot do that," Sirzechs said sternly. "Our preliminary defensive barriers are the only things keeping this entire institution from being levelled. Even yours –" Sirzechs nodded to Azazel's barrier, which was still holding steady – "won't hold them back forever."

"Could we not punch a hole in the defensive barrier for a few moments?"

Everyone looked to the source of the voice – the Ace of Clubs.

"If need be, I, Nero and Irina can put up supplementary barriers to hold the magician's attacks back if they should come from another direction. A few moments is all that will be required for Issei and Mirana to slip out the hole and begin crossing the campus."

Michael nodded. "Not a foolproof plan, Deethelm, but we are severely lacking in those at the moment."

"Why do I need an escort, again?" Issei asked grumpily, despite the circumstances.

"Because the field is full of magicians on the level of Middle-Class Devils who would likely kill you in just a few shots, and Mirana is far more competent than you with barrier magic," Michael said dryly. "All in favor?"

Azazel, Sirzechs and Serafall shrugged, though only Azazel spoke, his lips set in a grim line.

"Not like _we've_ got any better way to do that."

Michael nodded, then turned back to Issei.

"Issei, Mirana? I want the two of you to go under blackjack."

The brunette looked at Mirana, who nodded and spoke for the first time since entering the room. "You remember how to do that, Issei?"

"Hey!" Irina exclaimed. "Why does _she_ get to pair up with Issei? I could go with him!"

Michael, however, sent her a smoldering look, making Irina assume a wilted expression.

"Mirana is far stronger and more experienced than you, Irina – and putting aside that, they are both members of the Hearts suit, which will strengthen the effect of the Brave Saint cards."

Irina gave a reluctant nod, while Issei and Mirana turned to face one another.

A moment later, having been unsealed by each Saint, the effect activated.

* * *

An enormous surge of pure strength running through him – that was the closest description Issei could have come up with to describe the effect of the blackjack state.

It was as though he had sent the Boosted Gear into overdrive, with Explosion activating over and over.

Issei had never been under the effect of any of the Brave Saint system's effects, sans the ones that saved him and purged his mind (for all the changes _that_ ultimately made). He hadn't known what to expect.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Mirana asked, seeing the expression on Issei's face. "I always love doing this – even though it's almost never necessary."

"No need to discuss _that_ now, you two," Azazel said, before pulling the window open and placing his hand against the empty air. After a few seconds, cracks began to form in the invisible wall the four leaders had erected.

Once those seconds had passed, the Governor-General pointed out the window, towards the armada of magicians who were regrouping and reorganizing for another assault. "You two, get going. You've got ten seconds and you just wasted five of them."

The two members of Lady Gabriel's deck were gone in a flash, leaping out the window; Azazel dropped his own barrier for only a fraction of a second before they were through.

As they ran, their speed boosted enormously by the power of the blackjack effect, Mirana kept a barrier raised over them; the Magician's shots bounced harmlessly off it.

"Which way?" Mirana called.

"Follow me!"

* * *

With their incredibly enhanced speed, it took almost no time at all for the two to cross the entire campus, Issei barely keeping an inch ahead of Mirana.

After tearing through the front door, the two Brave Saints stopped their running and resumed a quick pace.

"Is it bad that I thought that was actually kind of fun?" Issei asked.

"Yes, no, perhaps. It doesn't matter, Issei."

The brunette blinked, not expecting the completely serious tone in Mirana's voice.

"We have a mission, Issei. We need to see that it's accomplished."

At the exact moment Mirana spoke the last syllable, the blast reached their ears.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Ugh… I hated this chapter._

 _On an unrelated note, if I_ _ **were**_ _to create an AU to this one where Issei was taken by another Seraph, which Seraph do you think would be the most interesting?_


	52. Ashes to Ashes

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Michael watched the Jack and Ace of Hearts go with some apprehension. While it was obvious that there was little else the group could do, the King of Spades hated sending those under his authority into battle. Michael had never said it out loud, but he'd been absolutely relieved at the armistice, simply because it meant less occasions where he would have to tell those he loved to potentially go to their deaths.

Relief came over Heaven's leader when he saw Mirana and Issei easily blocking the magician's blasts and tearing across the campus, no doubt going towards wherever the dhampir boy was being held.

"Good luck, you two…" he murmured, quietly enough that not even Azazel, his old rival, could hear him.

The four leaders hadn't had time to catch their breath, though, before something else happened – a purple summoning circle, the kind used by Devils, appeared in the middle of the floor.

"It seems we have a visitor," Sirzechs said, his tone dark. "And I've got a good idea of who."

From the circle appeared a young-looking woman, dressed in a low-cut purple dress, her brown hair tied up in a bun atop her head. In her left hand, she held a magical staff.

"Cattleya Leviathan," Sirzechs snarled. "Descendant of the _first_ Leviathan. I should've known."

"Well, if it isn't the unworthy Devil Kings Sirzechs and Serafall!" the woman said, her tone pleasant and making no effort to hide her utter disdain for everyone present.

"What are you doing here, Cattleya?"

Cattleya smirked. "I'm here to bring destruction and chaos."

With that, she raised her staff, and the building promptly detonated.

* * *

"What the hell was that?!" Issei exclaimed, looking out the window.

Issei felt horror worm its way into his brain as he realized where the smoke cloud was coming from. Before he could say anything, however, Mirana grabbed his arm.

"Issei, we have a mission. We must get moving, _now_!"

Issei looked back at her, his expression terrified. "Mirana, somebody just blew up the leader's summit! We need to go get reinforce-"

"From where, Issei?" Mirana snapped. "If you'll recall, our teleportation magics are locked down and our companions are frozen in time. Only the two of us can potentially undo the second problem. Besides that, I can almost guarantee that Lord Michael and the others are fine. They survived far, far worse in the Great War, and Lord Michael would never let the Brave Saints come to harm if he could possibly help it." She tugged once more. "Now let's go! We're wasting time standing here!"

After one last glance, Issei began to run once more through the building, side by side with Mirana.

* * *

Cattleya hung in mid-air, laughing at what she saw in the explosion's aftermath.

" _Adorable_!" she cooed mockingly at the sight before her. "The Three Great Powers put up a defensive barrier together! Adorable and _pathetic_!"

She was, at the very least, right on that point; before her stood a dome containing the participants of the Peace Conference (frozen and not), forged and held steady by the leaders present.

"What are you thinking, Cattleya?" Sirzechs called, keeping his voice calm.

"What _I'm_ thinking," she cackled, "is the exact _opposite_ of everyone at this disgusting meeting! If God and the Devil Kings aren't around anymore, then there should be a revolution in this world!"

"Cattleya, stop this right now!" Serafall cried. "What are you trying to do?!"

"Serafall…" Cattleya snarled. "You stole my Leviathan title and now _question_ me. How dare you." Her next words were said in a sickeningly sweet, sadistic tone. "Oh, don't worry, darling! Once I kill you today, I'll simply take back the name of the Devil King Leviathan for myself!"

Before Serafall could respond, however, Azazel cut in.

"Of course… I suppose it's too much to hope we're just caught up in a Devil's coup d'état?"

"I think it's more than that," Michael said. "Her plan is most likely to take over the whole world."

"Oh, Michael nailed it!" Cattleya said, her tone an arrogant one. "No one wants a world where God and the Devil King's deaths are covered up. And so, since you've clearly failed, we will take this decaying realm and reform it for- Azazel, what do you find so amusing?"

As she had revealed her intent, Azazel had begun laughing, a sound without a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Ah… "decaying"? "Reform"? How cliché. Come on, you have to know the first villains to die _always_ say crap like that."

"I'll teach you to mock me," Cattleya hissed, her aura gathering around her.

"Oh you will, will you?" Azazel asked, stepping forward and gathering his own aura. "Sounds like fun."

"Cattleya?" Sirzechs called. "You have no intention of backing down?"

"Not at all, Sirzechs," she shot back, entirely too confident in her mannerisms. "Don't get me wrong, you were a good Devil King, but you won't have that or any other title much longer, unfortunately!"

"Doubtful," Sirzechs said, eyes shutting as he did so.

A moment later, Azazel and Cattleya were a hundred feet above the school, facing each other as Fallen Angels and Devils once did.

"A descendant of the former Devil King Leviathan," Azazel said, looking his opponent over carefully. "A desperate monster nearing her end. Not a bad opponent." He smirked. "I think I'll treat myself to some Armageddon."

With that, the two began to clash.

* * *

The moment Azazel and Cattleya began their bout, things took a turn for the worse for the rest of the group on the ground.

Having realized that attempting to attack the frozen guards was essentially hopeless, every single magician in the vicinity began firing their blasts of magic at the tightly-packed group of negotiators.

Any one of their blasts would have been easy enough to cancel on its own. With more than a hundred opponents all blasting the impromptu barrier created by Michael, Serafall and Sirzechs, however, it became far more likely that one of them might find a weakness.

And even one death was unacceptable to anyone still moving.

"We are vastly outnumbered…" Michael lamented. "And even with our strength, a war of attrition must still be avoided."

"I'm currently analyzing the gate," Sirzechs said, "but it'll take time – and we don't have much of that."

At those words, Kiba looked at Michael, then to Sirzechs. After, he met eyes with the Brave Saints – first Irina, then Deethelm, then Nero.

Then, he made his decision – and drew his sword.

The Brave Saints followed suit, each now wielding a sword of their own – Nero with the beast of a sword called Arondight, Irina with a reforged Excalibur Mimic, and Deethelm with a simple sword of light that Kiba suspected he could have defeated all of them with.

"You can let _us_ ward off our attackers," Kiba said, addressing Michael.

The leader of Heaven turned, and saw the Devil and trio of Saints ready for battle.

"Can you work with our Saints, Knight of Rias Gremory?" the leader of Heaven asked, genuine concern in his voice.

Kiba nodded. "I've battled alongside one of them before. If he's an example of the Brave Saint's skill, then there's nothing to worry about, Lord Michael."

Michael smiled. "Well then, who am I to stop this impromptu alliance?"

"Lord Michael, can we just get to it?" Nero asked impatiently, a cocky grin on his face.

Michael chuckled, and a moment later, the group was let loose on the swarm of unfortunate magicians.

* * *

"Issei!" Mirana called from somewhere else in the building. "I've found it!"

The two had made the risky call to split up; while neither liked doing it, time was of the essence and anything that might accelerate their finding of the dhampir named "Gasper" was immediately embraced.

"Coming!" Issei shouted back.

Within moments, the brunette faced the same door Mirana did.

Over it was an enormous, magical seal.

"Shoot…" Issei muttered, before looking at Mirana. "You think you can break this?"

Mirana's index finger slowly ran down the obstruction, her brow furrowed all the while.

"Hmm…"

After she finished running her finger down it, she continued to stare at it for several seconds.

Then, she smiled, drew her fist back, and smashed it into the northwest quadrant of the seal.

The seal shattered like a block of loosely-packed sugar.

* * *

The fight, for Azazel, had started simply enough. Cattleya was a powerful Devil, there was no question about that, but she was incredibly blunt and unrefined in her use of magic. Her blasts of demonic energy were easily blocked or avoided, and she didn't seem to have any other tricks in the bag.

The Governor-General's thought, however, was proven wrong when he noticed something rather off about the way her aura moved and danced about. Putting aside the fact that there was far too _much_ aura for a Devil of Cattleya's supposed strength, there was something odd about its shape. Rather than a simple coating like most auras, this one was more like…

 _…a snake?_

As he thought this, an enormous crest formed in front of Cattleya, and the blast that ensued was truly massive.

Having slid behind her, Azazel spoke. "We should clear something up before moving forward."

Cattleya moved her left arm to set out another attack, which Azazel easily interrupted with his own left hand, catching the strike and negating her attack with his own power.

"You've got a lot of aura," Azazel continued. "Seems to be more than a Devil King's descendant should possess. "Where'd you get this power?"

"I would love to answer that question," Cattleya said, before screaming, "but why waste so much breath when you're just _going to die?!_ "

* * *

Upon darting into the room, Issei and Mirana were confronted by a simultaneously awful and bizarre sight.

Restrained on a similar barrier by shackles of pure light was a young-looking blonde child, obviously terrified and sobbing loudly. The surrounding magicians who had clearly imprisoned him there were the horrifying part of the sight.

The bizarre part, for a momentary distraction, was his clothing – he appeared to be wearing the _girl's_ Kuoh Academy uniform.

After a fraction of a moment, Issei shook his head and refocused on the magicians who had spun to face them.

"Devils?!" one of them snarled. "How'd they get through?"

"Devils?" Mirana asked, smirking. "Oh no, dear, worse. _Much_ worse."

"Angels!" Issei yelled, spreading his wings for a moment. "We're here to get you back, Gasper!"

This, however, produced the exact opposite reaction Issei had hoped for – rather than raise Gasper's spirits, he began to cry much more fiercely.

"Th-this whole thing's all my fault!" he wailed. "I guess I deserve Angels coming to kill me!"

As he said this, the magicians pointed daggers at Gasper's throat. "If either of you moves forward an inch, he dies. Why don't you just scamper on back to your little conference?"

" _Never_ ," Mirana shot back. "We are Angels, warriors in the service of Heaven. We will _never_ give up a mission until it's finished or we're dead."

"And how do you plan to get him back?" the magician leader said, before she began belting out cruel laughter.

The magicians paid dearly for their inattention.

With all their backs turned to Gasper, they did not see the glowing white barrier creep up around the imprisoned boy until it had already come up.

"Killing all of you, of course," Mirana said politely, before nodding to her companion, who had intuited her plan. "They're all yours, Issei."

Issei nodded, before summoning a small fire in his palm.

Before the magicians could react, he slammed his hand flat against the floor.

Mirana had but a moment to put up a barrier to protect herself before the entire room was devoured in flames.

The magicians, for their part, began screaming as they desperately attempted to douse the flames that were scorching their flesh, but it was all for naught. Within a minute, the final magician had ceased their agonized wailing, their bodies torching to ashes.

Both having killed before, neither Issei nor Mirana felt any guilt for killing the group.

This only left one final problem – the dhampir himself.

* * *

Once the smoke had cleared, the two immediately darted over the bodies of the scorched magicians and approached the dhampir restrained against the barrier.

Gasper looked absolutely terrified at their approach.

"P-please…" he sniffled. "I-If you're gonna kill me, don't make it hurt too much…"

"Gasper," Issei said, trying to sound reassuring, "we're not here to hurt you, I promise. We were sent by the Great Devil King Lucifer himself to try and get you out of here."

As he said this, Mirana darted around behind the barrier and began looking over it, looking for any weakness in it that she could exploit to break it.

"No way!" Gasper suddenly screamed. "Rias told me that Angels wanna kill Devils and vampires!"

"Gasper, we're in the middle of a peace conference," Issei said, attempting to explain the situation. "We're trying to make it so Devils and Angels and Fallen Angels won't be enemies anymore. But Rias and the others are stuck because of what those magicians did – everyone's in danger, Gasper!"

Once more, the Jack's words had precisely the opposite effect of their intention – the dhampir simply began crying even more.

"This whole thing's all my fault!" he wailed. "They'd be better off with me dead!"

"Gasper Vladi, cease that sort of talk."

It was Mirana who had spoken, and a moment later, the barrier to which Gasper was restrained shattered.

The Ace of Hearts caught the poor Devil the instant he started to fall, and before he could even react, the young woman had spun him around and embraced him.

"Gasper, listen to me and listen well. Not one bit of this is your fault," Mirana whispered in the boy's ear as she stroked his back and ran her fingers through his hair.

The Jack of Hearts was genuinely surprised when he realized Gasper wasn't squirming, and had in fact begun crying into Mirana's chest. For a moment, Issei was rather jealous.

"This is the fault of those filthy magicians, forcing out your Sacred Gear in a way you couldn't possibly prevent. It is _not your fault_ – but you _can_ help us stop them and keep them from hurting Rias."

Gasper looked up at that. "H-how?"

Mirana looked down at him gently. "I need you," she said, nodding towards Issei, "to drink my fellow Saint's blood. If Azazel is to be believed, then it should grant you greater control over your abilities, at least temporarily."

The dhampir teared up again. "No… I can't… I hate blood so much…"

"Gasper, you must overcome that," Mirana said, attempting to soothe him. "For the sake of your dear King, Rias Gremory. For her other servants. For the sake of everyone here."

"It's not like you'll need much, either," Issei interjected. "Azazel said a quick lick would be enough. Just… take a sip and then you can go back to hating it as much as you like."

With that, Issei formed a small blade from light and ran the sharp side across his palm, not even wincing as his skin split open and his blood flowed out.

Gasper looked up at Mirana, then to Issei, uncertainty in his small face.

"Your friends are depending on you, Gasper Vladi," Mirana said. "They need your help. I beg of you, taste of the blood of the Jack of Hearts and Red Dragon Emperor and allow peace to reign."

Mirana tightened the embrace for a fraction of a moment, then released the boy.

Gasper shook, eyes jumping back and forth.

After several moments, however, the dhampir took a deep breath and a shaky step towards Issei.

Then, he grasped the brunette's bloodied palm, shut his eyes, and licked.

* * *

With every minute that passed, Michael grew more worried.

It wasn't that he doubted the skill of the Ace of Hearts or the sheer will of the Jack. The situation, however, was deteriorating.

The four swordsmen who had volunteered their services to defend the frozen were certainly talented at their craft, but there were simply too many magicians for them to do anything but slow the assault.

Even as they fought, more magicians continued to appear from the gate, while Azazel seemed to be taking his sweet time fighting Cattleya.

Michael figured it was no surprise, given how laid-back he was; even when he was an Angel, the bastard had never taken his work a tenth as seriously as he should have.

Just as Michael was about to step outside the barrier and join the Saints and Kiba in battle, however, the entire school felt a second, much stronger blast of power wash over it.

* * *

The two Angels standing with the Bishop of Rias Gremory were both in utter shock.

When Azazel had claimed it would boost Gasper's power if he consumed Issei's blood, they had assumed that he might be able to break the conditions that had been forced onto him by the magicians.

What they had _not_ expected was for the boy to suddenly explode in a titanic surge of power, swamping them in an immense aura – one that did not feel entirely demonic.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped, and Gasper collapsed on the floor, knocked unconscious.

"What the heck was that?" Issei spluttered.

After Mirana picked Gasper up, she shrugged her shoulders, equally clueless.

"We'll see if it worked in a moment, I suppose…" She shook her head. "We need to go, Issei. Now."

The two took off, running back towards the group.

* * *

As soon as the wave of power flooded over the group, every person in it felt something shift and change.

Then, the gate above through which the magicians had been simply dissolved, broken apart by the blast of magical energy.

"What the…"

Michael, Sirzechs and Serafall's eyes were drawn to the group of frozen people inside the barrier, who suddenly weren't frozen any longer. Instead, they were pulled back to reality in the middle of a warzone.

Serafall's reaction was immediate, incredibly obvious and inappropriate.

While Sona struggled to pull her sister off of her, Rias demanded to know what the hell was going on.

"We can explain later," Sirzechs said in reply. "Right now, I need you two and your peerages to help clean up this mess!"

Rias nodded, understanding her brother's response immediately, and turned to her peerage.

"Akeno, you're with me. Ryuji, Koneko – the two of you are together. Let's wipe these magicians out!"

After extracting herself from her sister, Sona gave her peerage similar orders.

* * *

Not long after they took off, Issei and Mirana, with Gasper in tow, converged once more with the leaders of Heaven and Hell.

Having run across the entire campus, one might expect that they would be winded, but their own impressive physical conditions combined with the boosting effects of the Brave Saint system rendered this a non-issue.

"Ah," Michael said upon seeing the Ace and Jack, "it's good to see that the two of you are safe. And it seems you've succeeded in your mission tenfold, as well. You have our thanks."

Mirana shook her head. "Thank us later, if at all, Lord Michael." She extended Gasper towards Sirzechs, who took the dhampir and gently laid him down. "We aren't the ones who broke the barrier – this Devil named Gasper Vladi did that. Azazel wasn't kidding about it boosting his power."

"We may discuss this at another time," Michael said. "For now, let us focus on defeating the enemy forces, shall we?"

Issei and Mirana nodded, and without another word, joined the fray.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _If he was trained by Michael, I wonder how Issei would be..._


	53. Negotiations Not Accepted

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

 _And now we come to a scene I'd been looking forward to writing ever since this fic started._

* * *

Azazel was, in a word, disappointed.

It had been obvious from the outset that Cattleya wasn't exactly a technician. Her strikes were powerful, yes, and somewhat varied in their angles, but that did not change that they were simply powerful. Straight power was, of course, useful, but raw power without technique to back it was easily subverted or dealt with.

Beyond that, it was just deathly _tedious_ to fight. There was no imagination needed, no tricks or quirks in the opponent's fighting style to learn and best; all there was power striking with the force of a hundred elephants and the intelligence of ants.

Azazel yawned as he blocked yet another shot from Cattleya, earning a sharp-tongued remark from the arrogant Devil. Once the attack had ceased, the Governor-General of the Fallen Angels casually reached into his coat.

"I'm pretty bored right about now. You mind if I spice things up?"

From the fabric, Azazel withdrew an incredibly short spear. It was golden, with a handle equal in size to the head and a purple gem resting upon the handle.

"What are you holding?" Cattleya demanded, sounding mildly confused.

"Something much more interesting than war. Call it my hobby." Azazel raised the spear so that the moonlight glanced off of the metal. "This is the Downfall Dragon Spear - an artificial Sacred Gear developed by yours truly. Balance _Break_."

* * *

As soon as the aura was released, the attention of nearly everyone - magicians, Angels, Devils and Fallen Angels - broke from the battle still raging around them to stare at the Fallen Angel. Chiefly among their number was a certain brunette Angel.

Azazel had been encompassed by an enormous sphere of light. A moment later, that same sphere contorted, twisted and shaped itself into a humanoid form.

Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, it vanished, leaving behind Azazel.

The Fallen Angel Governor-General was now covered by an immense golden armor, set with purple gems. The armor was clearly draconic in influence, but the thing that held Issei's attention most the aura itself.

"Ddraig? What is that? That aura?" Issei asked as he looked on in awe of the Governor-General.

 **"He managed to make a pact with** _ **Fafnir?**_ **"** A chuckle escaped the Red Dragon Emperor. **"I suppose he truly is the strongest Fallen Angel. A monster in every sense, brains and brawn."**

"Fafnir?"

 **"I'll explain later."**

* * *

Azazel raised his now-armored palm at the Leviathan descendant. "Come here."

" _I'll kill you!_ " Cattleya snarled as she obliged him, tearing forwards whilst enveloped in her snakelike aura. As she did so, Azazel formed a spear of light in his hand.

Then, all of a sudden, Azazel was _behind_ Cattleya, who had begun screaming in pain from an enormous gash that had appeared from nowhere on her shoulder. Issei's jaw dropped wide at this display.

Cattleya, in response, spun in midair. Half a moment later, her fingers began to...

...extend?

Then, the fingers swelled up and burst, and from each burst came forth a legion of _new_ hands, which continued this pattern as they rocketed towards Azazel at breakneck speed.

"I am not necessarily needed for the creation of our new world!" Cattleya yelled in desperation as the extensions wound themselves around his left arm and seemingly melted into it. No matter what Azazel did, the extensions wouldn't break; even his light spear did not get them to so much as budge.

"If I can take out even _one_ of the Three Great Powers, then _I welcome death!_ " Cattleya shrieked. " _I'll destroy myself for glory!_ "

"Destroy yourself?" Azazel said dismissively. "I don't want to mock your hopes and dreams, but it doesn't seem worth it!"

Then, to Issei's shock and amazement, the governor-general, without a hint of hesitation, sliced cleanly through his own shoulder, separating himself from the crazed Devil King descendant.

"You'll still die," Azazel said.

With a quick toss of his spear, Cattleya had been skewered through the skull.

As she screamed her last, she dissolved into nothingness, the descendant of Leviathan felled in two strikes.

"But I'm only willing to give up an arm for you," Azazel finished, moments before the golden armor disintegrated. A quick healing spell later, and the blood gushing from his mutilated arm ceased to flow.

Into Azazel's remaining hand drifted the purple gem that had rested on the end of the spear.

"And yet again, there's still plenty of room for improvement," he murmured, staring at the sphere, before tucking it back into his coat.

* * *

"He cut off his own arm...?" Issei whispered, shocked by the short sequence that had just taken place. He was jolted back to reality, however, when a hand came to rest on his shoulder.

"Issei, now isn't the time to gawk," said Mirana. "There are still magicians who have yet to be dealt with."

"Right," Issei said, reluctantly tearing his eyes away from Azazel and going back into the fray.

* * *

The remaining magicians were killed off at an almost leisurely pace; with the gate broken and the one leading the charge dead, there was no reason to fight aggressively from any of the powers.

Azazel, meanwhile, stayed up in the air; Issei supposed he'd earned the rest.

As Issei deflected a magician's close-ranged magical blast and subsequently decapitated them, however, a thought occurred to him.

 _Where's Vali?_

* * *

Despite the pace taken by the alliance, they made good time in polishing off the remaining enemy forces.

However begrudgingly, Issei had to admit to having his hide saved at least once by Rias' new piece, the boy's magically-based bow-and-arrow combination coming into its own in aerial combat.

High above the school, Azazel allowed himself a grin as he watched the last magician die.

"Well, that's nice. They've annihilated everyone."

The moment these words left his lips, however, somebody slammed into his back with titanic force, sending the Governor-General crashing into the ground and restarting Kuoh Academy's crater collection.

 _Well, almost everyone_.

* * *

Issei, at the time, had made the foolish mistake of allowing himself to relax for a moment, take in their rather bloody handiwork.

The magicians were dead, Azazel's opponent had fallen, the gate had been shut for good. He'd almost thought that the battle had been won.

Issei himself wasn't much worse for wear, save a small burn on his shoulder. Looking around, he could see that the story was mostly the same for the rest of the Saints. The Gremory and Sitri groups' injuries had been more serious, but none were life-threatening.

This small bit of satisfaction was dashed when Azazel came crashing down not fifteen feet away.

As the Fallen Angel pulled himself from the pit, seemingly unhurt by the impact, he groaned.

"Oof... you got me. Must be losing my edge." He turned to look up at the sky, resting his head on his remaining hand while a mildly annoyed smirk came across his face. " _Bad_ Vali."

Sure enough, when Issei turned to follow the Governor-General's gaze, he was met by the sight of the White Dragon Emperor, cloaked in a white armor not dissimilar to Azazel's.

"Sorry, Azazel," Vali replied, his tone indicating those words to be a lie. "Things just looked more interesting on this side."

Issei's teeth clenched. "So Vali was the betrayer. Why am I not surprised?"

"I can understand," Azazel said as stood up, brushed himself off and spread his twelve black wings. "There is, however, something I'd like to ask you." Azazel sprang into the air, coming to float evenly with Vali. "You know Shemhazai, my vice Governor-General? Well, he's recently informed me that someone's been gathering the dangerous members and elements of the Three Great Powers."

Azazel gave a humorless half-grin to Vali, tipping his head as he did so. "What were they called? The "Khaos Brigade"?"

Vali didn't answer.

"So," Azazel continued, "I bet I can guess who's leading you - has to be Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon, right?"

"Ophis?" Issei gasped.

"Yes, it's true that I've sided with her," Vali said, speaking as though he were discussing the weather. "But believe me, neither of us has the slightest interest in world domination. We're just a group that formed in order to use our power - that's all."

Azazel shrugged. "I suppose that makes sense. Conspiring with Cattleya seemed beneath you, but even still... both of you had Devil titles stolen, so I wasn't sure..."

"He's a Devil King descendant too?!" Serafall cried.

It wasn't her that Vali was looking at when he responded, however.

Instead, the White Dragon Emperor stared Issei down, his expression unreadable behind his white metal mask.

"My name is Vali _Lucifer_! I am a direct descendant of one of the dead Devil Kings - though my mother was human, thus making me a half-blood. My father was the grandson of the Great Devil King Lucifer!"

Two, four, then six Devil wings forced themselves from Vali's back, enshrining the blue Diving Dividing's aura in a shroud of black.

"So he is a descendant of a Devil King and the possessor of the Vanishing Dragon simultaneously?" Issei could hear Deethelm murmur. "Then his power is..."

"I believe the term 'miracle' suits me well," Vali said, his tone nonchalant. "If only the same could be said of _you_ , Issei Hyoudou. Fate can be cruel, wouldn't you agree?"

Every single head promptly turned to look at the brunette Angel.

Issei bit his lip. "Maybe."

"I am the _strongest_ dragon," Vali boasted. "And the blood of the Great Devil King Lucifer flows through my veins."

"That proves _what_ exactly?"

"But you..." Vali said dismissively without answering Issei's question, "...you're just a former human, reincarnated out of pity. Before you became an Angel, you weren't even an impressive high school student. That is to say, aside from the Boosted Gear, you are _nothing_. It's disappointing. It's so disappointing that it's funny."

Issei clenched his teeth, but didn't respond.

"Even though we are rival Sacred Gears..." Vali droned on, "you and I are as far apart as the sky to the earth. No... _more_ than that."

* * *

For several moments, Vali hung there, saying nothing, mildly interested in what his rival's response would be. He expected anger, frustration or fear - all excellent means of getting a Sacred Gear user to fight seriously.

What neither he nor anyone else expected was what Issei actually said.

"You're right."

Not only Vali, but the Devils, Fallen Angels and Angels present all appeared _incredibly_ confused by this response.

"You're right," Issei repeated. "It _is_ disappointing."

"So, then-" Vali asked, before Issei cut him off.

"It's disappointing that the White Dragon Emperor had to buy into this crap."

Vali blinked behind his mask. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"We're not rivals, Vali, and I'm not going to fight you."

The half-Devil's eyes narrowed. "You are the Red Dragon Emp-"

"No, I'm not," Issei said, his voice growing testy. "I am the Jack of Hearts - one of Lady Gabriel's Brave Saints who happens to wield the Boosted Gear. I am _not_ the Red Dragon Emperor - that's Ddraig, and he's not me."

"You _reject_ that proud title?" Vali asked, sounding genuinely puzzled.

"Of course. Pride's a sin, after all."

"It's not _pride_ to accept a title that-"

"The same title that's been used by mass murderers and psychotics who wielded it? Only one creature who used that title has an ounce of my respect, and that's Ddraig himself. And unlike you, I don't intend to live in somebody else's shadow my whole life and demand respect because of it."

Azazel could practically _hear_ the fuses blowing in Vali's brain, despite the fact that Vali's voice remained calm and controlled.

 _This kid's got_ _ **no**_ _idea how much he's pissing Vali off right now..._

"You seek to defy fate, then?" Vali demanded. "A foolish choice. We are the Red and White Dragon Emperors - we must _always_ clash. It's nothing more than destiny."

"And you believe that?" Issei snapped. "There's no fate in this, Vali. The previous hosts of our Sacred Gears didn't fight because they didn't have a choice. They fought because they wanted to. Ddraig and Albion might have been perfect opponents for each other, but they didn't fight each other because destiny said they had to. They fought because they wanted to, just like their hosts. There's nothing forcing us to do the same."

"Are you trying to make _peace_ with me?" Vali said, chuckling mirthlessly.

"Vali, once the Three Factions unite, they'll turn their focus on this "Khaos Brigade" post-haste, and they'll probably get other mythologies to join in. You and I both know that you won't last a year." Issei turned his gaze to Sirzechs, then to Azazel. "They'll probably be a lot more lenient if you surrender sooner rather than later."

Sirzechs shrugged and nodded, while Azazel rubbed his chin with his remaining hand, saying nothing. Issei, for his part, breathed a sigh of relief at having guessed their responses correctly.

"Then there is yet another way we are different, Issei Hyoudou," Vali spat, disgusted at Issei's words. "I am a powerful warrior with no fear of battle or death. _You_ , on the other hand, are a coward, an insult to both the Heavenly Dragon dwelling within you and Heaven itself."

Issei gnashed his teeth at this remark, but did not respond.

"But, if you claim that we will only clash if we choose to, then that is simple enough to fix. I simply need to force you to choose battle."

Issei's eyes narrowed at Vali, but he still said nothing.

"So then," Vali said, a wicked grin coming onto his face behind the mask. "If you won't fight without a motivation, how about I give you one? That family of yours, perhaps?"

The Jack's eyes widened slightly.

"Yes, I think the role of an avenger suits you well. Once I've slaughtered both your mother and father, perhaps you'll finally find the mettle required to come and face me. And if that's not enough, I can kill your fellow Saints, too."

* * *

Michael listened to Vali speak with steadily-growing disgust.

The half-Devil was certainly strong - no one was denying that much. But the sheer arrogance with which he bandied it about was both tiresome and repugnant to the leader of Heaven.

Michael would, however, have admitted to the sin of pride at hearing Issei's response and attempts to quell Vali Lucifer without violence.

It was all for naught, however, and at Vali's threat towards not just Issei's family but Heaven's Saints, Michael stepped foward, more than willing to kill Vali right then and there and fully intending to battle him in Issei's stead.

He, stopped, however, when he looked towards the Jack of Hearts.

The brunette had begun shaking, and after a few moments, the Boosted Gear appeared across Issei's left arm.

"Issei?" Michael called.

Just as the word left his lips, everyone in the area felt an incredible burst of power blast forth from the Jack, and all observing were blinded by a flash of crimson light.

Azazel's sight was the first to return, and when it did, all he could do was shoot a quizzical look at Issei's form.

"Well, of all the things I might have expected... that wasn't it."

* * *

 _And cut._

 _*Begins laughing like a demented circus clown on meth*_

 _Also, wanted to address this:_

 _ **That's right, Mirana. You tell him. Because God forbid you let him leave the area of the anti-teleportation in order to go get reinforcements. I mean, that would be stupid!**_

 _Right, because they were 100% aware of where the edge of the teleportation field was and definitely weren't under orders to get Gasper back in any case._


	54. Scarlet Sainthood

_**How do you know what a demented circus clown on meth sounds like? Can you show me, please!?**_

 _I'm from Florida. At least 1/3 of the population is on meth at any given time._

 _As always, I don't own Highschool DxD._

* * *

The blast of power emanating from Issei Hyoudou hadn't been entirely unexpected by anyone familiar enough with Sacred Gears. Indeed, it wasn't hard to realize that Vali had specifically chosen his words to force as much anger out of Issei as possible and force him to achieve the greater peak. The Lucifer descendant had, if nothing else, succeeded in this goal.

But the ultimate result was a tad different than the expectation.

Those who knew anything about the Boosted Gear had a very specific idea of what would be summoned by this state - a crimson armor set with green gems, parallel to the one currently being worn by Vali.

Issei's evolution, however, was nothing of the sort, and for the briefest moment, Michael thought the crimson flash hadn't yet faded from his eyes. After closing his eyes and shaking his head, however, the King of Spades realized the truth of things.

The gauntlet had vanished. Instead, from Issei's back now extended half a dozen wings, each and every one dyed a deep crimson. The halo above Issei's head was bent slightly and was now intersected by a second one; both were equally as red as Issei's feathered wings had become. The small amount of Holy aura emitted by all Angels had also increased dramatically, leaving many of the Devils present to shudder in response.

* * *

It was Mirana's turn to gawk as she stared at her fellow Saint from the back. She wasn't incredibly knowledgeable on Sacred Gears, but she knew that this wasn't what Issei's Balance Breaker should like. Dulio, when she'd asked, had told her what the Boosted Gear's Balance Breaker looked like, which was nothing like what was now in her sights.

After a few heartbeats, Mirana tore her eyes away to look at the leader of Heaven.

"Lord Michael? What is this? Where's the armor?"

For no more than a moment, Michael turned his head to look at her.

"It seems Issei has a Balance Breaker all his own."

* * *

Issei looked up at Vali, his eyes glowing as red as his wings. His words, however, were directed at the King of Spades.

"Lord Michael?" he asked.

The tone was incredibly calm, each word spoken with utter restraint and clarity.

It also made it clear that Issei Hyoudou was absolutely furious.

"What is it, Issei?" Michael answered, disquieted by the sudden change in the Jack's temperament.

"Permission to attack?"

Michael blinked. "You now _wish_ to clash with the White Dragon Emperor, Issei?"

"I tried to make peace. He refused and has threatened not only my parents but the membership of Heaven. He's a member of a terrorist organization and betrayed this alliance to someone who would have committed regicide against the Great Devil Kings Lucifer and Leviathan if given the chance. The negotiation is over, Lord Michael. I ask again - permission to attack?"

Michael took a deep breath.

"Permission granted."

* * *

As Issei stepped forwards, Vali smirked behind his mask.

"I see you've finally found your fighting spirit. It took you long enough, but better late than never, I suppose."

Issei ignored this comment as he reached for the sword in the scabbard that had, until now, gone ignored. It was to the point that even the other Saints, who had been mildly curious about the blade, had more or less forgotten that it existed.

When it was withdrawn, however, it became instantly clear to everyone present that Issei Hyoudou was holding an incredibly powerful Holy Sword.

Nero was the first to realize which one.

" _Ascalon?!_ "

 **"The Dragonslayer?"** came Albion's distinctive voice. **"Vali, watch yourself. Your armor won't be able to deflect even a single strike of this blade."**

Vali, however, just shrugged in response, not moving at all from his position in the air. "Okay, then I won't let him cut me."

After bringing the blade to his side, Issei sprang into the air, coming to hover evenly with Vali.

 **"BOOST!"**

"Threaten _me_ if you like, Vali," Issei said coldly. "Tell me you want to butcher me and feed me to the beasts if you like."

 **"BOOST!"**

"But there's one thing you do not do. _Ever_."

 **"BOOST!"**

"You do _not_ threaten the people that I care about. Not my family, not my fellow Saints, none of Heaven's Angels, nobody in this town... _no one_."

 **"BOOST!"**

In the brunette's hand, and without even running his fingers down the blade, the sword of Saint George was lit ablaze.

" **BOOST!"**

"All that's to say... you brought this on yourself."

 **"BOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOST-"**

It took less than a second before _everyone_ present, even Issei, had lost count of how many times the chant had been called. By the time it finished, Issei was completely surrounded by an obvious green aura, the Sacred Gear's built-up power literally tinting the area around the Jack.

Issei slowly raised his blade until the ablaze sword's tip pointed directly at his opposite.

"So then, descendant of Lucifer... shall we?"

* * *

Vali Lucifer was rather pleased with himself as he stared the scarlet-winged Angel down, and despite the somewhat unexpected result of his words, still had every confidence that the Jack of Hearts was no match for him.

"Well, I see you're still rejecting your nat- _augh!"_

Vali hadn't even seen Issei move. One instant the brunette was directly in front of him; the next, the Jack was behind him, and Vali had an excruciatingly painful slice through his torso. Even the many techniques Azazel had taught him in order to ignore pain weren't helping much. The stink of burning flesh reached Vali's nostrils.

"So that's Ascalon..." Vali murmured as he turned to face Issei once more. "You know, I let _you_ talk..."

"Your mistake," Issei said, his voice unchanged from its icy tone.

Vali grinned behind his mask, despite the pain. "I suppose."

With every ounce of speed he could muster, Vali rocketed towards his opponent.

By the time he got there, fractions of a moment later, Issei was gone and Vali was left yelling in pain once more. Vali had managed to avoid getting his left arm ripped off, but that didn't keep Issei from opening a gash in it.

This time, however, Vali hadn't stopped, instead twisting around in an incredibly display of maneuverability and tearing towards Issei once more before the latter could reposition himself. He pulled his fist back as he tore forward, then tossed his clenched hand towards the Angel with every bit of speed and force he could muster.

Issei, however, punished this easily.

Vali let out an uncharacteristic scream of agony as his arm was sliced nearly in half from the middle of his fingertip to nearly his elbow, barely avoiding having the flesh be separated from his body entirely.

He darted back and tried to reposition for a different approach, but by the time he did, Issei had already closed the distance and bitten deep into the half-Devil's side once again.

Vali, at this point, was almost entirely on the defensive, trying to avoid the dragonslayer's sword that was in Issei's capable hands and get in a single touch on the latter's flesh. If he could do that, then he would win without issue.

Issei, however, was simply too fast. In every single case, Issei would easily overtake Vali and tear his flesh with the blade once more, and dodge his strikes in the few cases where he didn't take direct advantage of them.

Slash after slash, wound after wound, Vali was kicked further and further towards defeat, steadily becoming too wounded to fight back and too busy trying to focus through the blinding agony.

The Lucifer descendant considered, for an instant, using Half Dimension, but he realized immediately that Issei would easily avoid this and slash into him the moment he stopped moving.

At least twice, he tried to begin the chant to release Juggernaut Drive, only to be interrupted by his own scream as the enraged Angel struck him once more with that cursed sword.

By the time that he saw Issei come directly towards his front, Vali was too weak to even raise his arm to defend himself, for all the good it would have done. The great-grandson of Lucifer was drowning in pain, physical and mental. Every single sword strike caused him unimaginable torment. Azazel had once told him of this Holy Sword, and Vali had rightly wondered what it might be like to face it in combat. Nothing, however, could have prepared him for the real thing.

Beyond that, every bit of pride he had had in his own abilities had been sliced apart and left to rot by the blade in the Angel's hand. Vali couldn't comprehend how, but Issei Hyoudou, this high school student-turned-Angel, was besting him.

Vali didn't even feel his armor shatter beneath Issei's final strike, and only realized it had when he found himself on the ground and on his knees.

Very slowly, what little strength was left in his arms failed him, and the Lucifer descendant came to rest in the dirt, face-down, his blood trickling across the grass.

His last thought was an apology and farewell - directed not at Issei, the alliance members, the magicians or Katarea.

It was directed at Albion.

* * *

Issei landed rather gently on the grass, perhaps twenty feet from Vali. In contrast to the mangled half-Devil lying on the ground before him, Issei was no worse for wear than he had been when their impromptu duel began less than sixty seconds earlier.

Crimson wings still out, he leisurely strode towards his fallen opponent, intending to deliver the final blow once the distance had been crossed.

The voice that spoke was not Michael's. It was not Mirana's, Nero's, Deethelm's or Irina's. Azazel, Sirzechs and Serafall remained silent. No words escaped the mouths of any of the other Devils present. It was not even Ddraig who spoke.

 **"Issei Hyoudou... please do not do this..."**

The Jack of Hearts stopped short, the Angel dyed red having been frozen in his tracks by genuine surprise.

Unbeknownst to him, Michael and Azazel were both as shocked by this as Issei himself was. Never in their lifetimes had they ever considered that they might hear the speaker say such a thing.

"...are you _begging_ me, White Dragon Emperor?"

 **"I am."**

Issei's fingers tightened around Ascalon, but he did not continue walking. "Why shouldn't I?"

 **"Vali has been beaten - even he would not argue otherwise. What need is served by killing him?"**

"We can start with the fact that he sold us out to our enemies."

 **"Those enemies were fools - and Vali knew it. They never stood the slightest chance of defeating** _ **any**_ **of the current Devil Kings. If anything, he aided you by drawing one of them into the open to be eliminated easily. He gave them no information beyond the meeting place and time of this new alliance."**

"That doesn't change the fact that he betrayed us."

 **"And who has truly suffered for it but he and your enemies?"** The normally stoic voice of the Vanishing Dragon had, to a small degree, begun to resemble Ddraig's more emotional tone.

"Azazel lost his arm-"

 **"He can replace that easily. He has more than sufficient knowledge to regrow it or employ a prosthetic."**

"He threatened to kill my family and Heaven's Saints."

 **"Issei Hyoudou, Vali had no intention of following through on either threat. All Vali wanted was to rile you up. He wished to see your full strength, nothing more."**

"Do you really think I'm stupid enough to believe that? And even if that _is_ true, he still made the threat - I will _not_ let it go unanswered."

 **"You would strike down a defeated enemy who is no longer any threat to you?"**

Issei flinched almost imperceptibly, and his tone had a small degree of hesitance to it when he answered.

"Wouldn't be the first time I've done that."

 **"How** _ **noble**_ **of you. What would God say about this, I wonder? What would he think of this sort of callous disregard for life?"**

Issei's teeth clenched for a moment, suddenly _very_ aware of all the eyes on him - not just the negotiators, but those who had surrounded the conference itself, the ones he and Mirana had had to dart beneath to reach Gasper. Then, he looked backwards, towards the leader of Heaven.

Michael, however, shook his head. "This is your decision, Issei. You engaged him, and so you will decide his fate."

Issei's head swung back towards the defeated Vali, an awful memory having been unwittingly shaken loose.

In his mind's eye, he could see a certain other person who he'd once been in this same situation with.

 **"You were willing to show mercy before, Issei,"** Albion continued. **"Are you unwilling to show it now?"**

"I offered it to him. He didn't take it. Why should I give it again?"

It was obvious to everyone that the edge had been ground off of Issei's voice. The anger was rapidly dissipating, replaced by a slight, but noticeable twinge of pain.

 **"You have demonstrated your strength. You, your fellow Saints and family remain unharmed. He has harmed no one in this alliance. Azazel shrugged off his single attack. What purpose would killing him serve except your own vengeance? Is indulgence in revenge a Godly thing, Jack of Hearts?"**

At those words, Issei raised Ascalon until its blade was near-parallel to his eyes. Then, he carefully ran his thumb up the length of the blade, taking care to not tear his skin as he did so.

 _He's not totally wrong..._

Issei knew his mind was starting to concoct excuses, but he didn't have it in him to stop the words from going through his head.

With the blood that had drenched the proud Holy Sword removed on one side, Issei could clearly see his own face reflected in the enchanted metal. His own countenance was dyed red, both from the crimson halos above his head and the splattered blood of the half-Devil before him.

And while his rational mind knew it was not really there, he could see a certain visage behind it. Leering. Mocking him.

Then it shifted, and became another image. One of a glow that illuminated blood, bone and the same visage, now locked forever in a terrified expression.

Issei's grip around Ascalon tightened. Then, he gave a sharp, sudden swing towards the empty air. Beneath the moonlight, the droplets of Vali's blood that remained on the sword flecked off, shimmering as they fell.

Then, he pointed with the blade towards Vali's brutalized body.

"Just once, White Dragon Emperor. Just once."

Issei turned and gestured towards the leaders.

"Take him and lock him up."

* * *

Just as Issei returned the sword to his side, he felt a presence approaching at an incredible speed. Instinctively, he leaped back.

An instant later, an enormous staff slammed into the space where he had been, a thunderous _crash_ blasting into the ears of all present. Issei, as the closest to the strike, was left coughing on the dust.

Through the tears that sprung up from both the hacking fit and dirt in his eyes, Issei caught sight of a young man kneeling down next to Vali. He wore an odd armor, one obviously inspired by, if not outright taken, from ancient China.

When the young man looked up, Issei saw, through the blur of tears, the glare on his face.

"If it weren't for Vali's condition," the Jack heard the young man say, "I'd bash your head in right now, Red Dragon Emperor. Good-bye."

The same staff that had been enormous a moment before now shrunk to the size of one of Issei's spears in the mysterious person's hands. After a quick twirl, he slammed it into the ground before him.

A few seconds later, both the armored man and Vali had vanished through a portal.

* * *

Issei didn't feel cheated when he realized that Vali had escaped. He felt no anger or frustration.

All he felt was an enormous sense of relief - relief that it was all over.

"Issei!"

The brunette turned at the sound of the voice to find that Mirana had darted over to him.

"Are you okay?" she asked, obviously concerned.

"Yeah," Issei replied, sounding quite exhausted.

Mirana exhaled, obviously relieved, before she offered him a smile as she looked him over. As she took in the sight of Issei further, her smiled widened.

"You do look rather nice this way," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder. "How did you _do_ that?"

"Do what?"

"Create _this_?" Mirana elaborated, gesturing towards the Jack's back and the halos above his head. "I always thought that the Balance Breaker of the Boosted Gear was an armor."

"I... uh..." Issei said, scratching the back of his head. "I don't really know."

"I can answer that."

The Ace and the Jack turned to look at the voice's source.

"It's like this," Azazel continued as he landed about ten feet away. "You know that Sacred Gears respond and evolve in accordance with the user's will, emotions and desires, right? The same holds true for their Balance Breakers. I think you made it pretty clear how you see yourself and how you want to be seen, Issei. The Boosted Gear answered that desire, and so your Balance Breaker evolved according to your wishes."

Both Issei and Mirana nodded, before the Ace turned back to Issei.

"Issei, I'm about to disable the effect of the Brave Saint system. Get ready."

The moment she did, Issei's third pair of wings and additional halo vanished, as did the crimson coloration. With that change, the Jack felt as though every bit of his own strength had been sucked out of him, and he fell forward.

He was caught by the Ace of Hearts, and Issei once more found himself being embraced by Mirana Shatarova.

Neither of them could suppress a grin, even as Irina's complaining began to intrude into their ears.

* * *

Azazel chuckled at the sight of Issei teetering forward and being hugged by Mirana.

"Well then, I'll leave you two to it," he said, leaving the two Saint's faces turning a slight shade of red.

As he walked back towards the other two leaders, he shrugged slightly. "Well then, I think it's time we finish what we came here to do, don't you?"

Sirzechs, Serafall and Michael all nodded.

* * *

The peace agreement was as simple as it was clear:

 _Representing Heaven: The Archangel Michael._

 _Representing the Grigori: The Fallen Angel Governor-General Azazel._

 _Representing the Devils: Lord Sirzechs Lucifer and Lady Serafall Leviathan._

 _In the name of peace and the spirit of cooperation, any conflict between the Three Factions is henceforth forbidden._

Nearly everyone who read it was left with a smile, a certain Angel and two Devil's peerages in particular.

* * *

Once the agreement had been signed and sworn to, Azazel promptly departed back to wherever he was staying. Sirzechs and Serafall were quick to follow suit, citing business in the Underworld (though the latter promised to return soon, to Sona's chagrin).

Sona and Rias, meanwhile, had told their respective peerages that club activities would resume the next day, and soon enough, they had vanished as well.

The only ones remaining were the Angels.

"I'm curious, Issei," Deethelm asked, "why didn't you kill the White Dragon Emperor?"

Issei sighed and shrugged, not saying anything. Deethelm accepted this, and while Nero seemed more annoyed than his older counterpart among the Clubs, he seemed to eventually do the same.

Mirana, for her part, did not question his reasoning, trusting her fellow Saint's judgment and thoughts, whatever they might have been.

"So then, Issei," Michael said, "do you intend to return home or to Heaven first?"

Issei yawned as he picked at his somewhat "priestly" clothes. "I'll head back to Heaven with you guys first. I need to take these off before I head home. Then, if you don't mind, I'm going to sleep and I don't want to be woken up even if the house is on fire."

Michael chuckled. "Well then, let's depart, shall we?"

A few moments later, the Academy stood empty.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _No cliffhanger this time. For now, you will not suffer so much._

 _I get the feeling this chapter's going to be very love-it-or-hate-it for my audience._


	55. Not Meant for His Eyes

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"Lord Michael!"

The guards at the entrance of First Heaven bowed at the return of the Archangel and his escorts.

"Rise, please," Michael said, his voice uncharacteristically joyous.

"The treaty's official!" Nero yelled before either of the Angels standing post at the gates could ask. "Heaven and Hell aren't enemies anymore!"

While Deethelm gently scolded the Ace of Diamonds, Michael simply chuckled. "I shall make the announcement tomorrow morning. Right now, I believe all of us are in need of rest." The leader of Heaven turned back and grinned knowingly at his entourage.

Michael vanished into a golden cross, leaving the five Brave Saints to walk through the gates.

Once through, Deethelm and Nero broke off immediately, each wishing the group a pleasant evening before making their way back to their respective homes.

Somewhat more reluctantly, Irina did the same a few minutes later, launching a sullen look at Issei as she departed.

For their part, Issei and Mirana decided to walk the half-mile or so back to the Hearts building – Issei didn't feel like flying, given his rather tired state, and Mirana was more than happy to remain earthbound for a short while.

They didn't say much on their way back, but Issei certainly wasn't fighting Mirana when she gently took his hand.

* * *

The walk back to the building was rather quiet, with few Angels paying them more than a passing "hello", despite what they'd just come back from. Issei was sure he and Mirana would be informally interrogated by eager Angels soon enough, but he appreciated the reprieve.

As they stepped into the darkness of the Hearts building, the Ace and Jack could both hear voices in the gathering hall.

Neither was particularly surprised to find the rest of the deck, including Gabriel herself, seated at the table. Conspicuous by her absence was Griselda.

"Good evening, Lady Gabriel," Issei and Mirana said simultaneously, both dropping to their knees.

"Good evening, both of you," Gabriel answered warmly. "You may both rise."

"So, how did it go?" Xenovia asked.

"Well," Mirana said, "barring the small hiccup of a poorly-planned terrorist attack, the treaty's been signed."

"Terrorist attack?" Gabriel asked, suddenly _quite_ concerned. "What are the losses?"

"Total annihilation of the enemy," Issei answered, "excluding the person who betrayed the alliance to the enemy in the first place. We didn't lose anyone, to my knowledge. The Aces and I are all fine, and I think it goes without saying that Lord Michael wasn't even scratched."

Gabriel sighed with relief. "That's good. Very good. The treaty is official, then." She smiled. "The long overdue peace is finally upon us, then…"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Lady Gabriel," Mirana said. "The White Dragon Emperor – Vali Lucifer – was the betrayer. And apparently there's an entire group devoted to trying to destroy the fledgling peace – something called the "Khaos Brigade"."

The female Seraph's face fell slightly, but her smile did not vanish entirely.

"Why would anyone _want_ to do that?" Asia asked in a worried tone. "Why would they want war and chaos?"

Gabriel shrugged. "Some would have you believe that the natural state of the Three Factions should be warfare. Others would say that _their_ group is the strongest and thus is the only one that should survive. Still others seek to fight for its own sake."

"Like Vali…" Issei muttered.

Gabriel nodded. "Such as Vali Lucifer, it would seem. Did he threaten you, Issei?"

Issei shook his head. "It wasn't me he threatened. I tried to talk him into surrendering, but he wasn't hearing any of it." The Jack chewed his lip. "He threatened to go after my family and the Saints."

The King of Hearts fixed him with a controlled expression. "What was your answer to that?"

Issei didn't answer with words; instead, he reached for the scabbard at his side. Withdrawing the blade, he held it vertically, making his point without speaking.

Gabriel nodded, a small, pleased smile crawling onto her lips. "I would expect no other response. Did you defeat the White Dragon?"

"Yes, Lady Gabriel, I did. I'm guessing that's why the Seraphs gave me Ascalon – just in case the White Dragon and I wound up fighting."

As Gabriel nodded, Issei sheathed the sword. When he asked his King if she wanted the blade back, however, the female Seraph raised a hand and shook her head.

"Issei, we didn't go to the trouble of creating that crystal just so you could use Ascalon once." She grinned. "Saint George's sword is now yours – permanently."

Issei's eyebrows raised in surprise, but he offered her only his thanks.

"Anyway," Issei said once he had, "I'm going to get changed, get a shower and then get home."

"Oh?" Mirana suddenly piped up, "Going to leave without mentioning your Balance Breaker?"

Gabriel's eyes widened. "You've achieved Balance Breaker, Issei?"

Issei shrugged. "Uh… yeah. I got mad at Vali and I suddenly had six red wings."

The female Seraph stood, walked over to Issei and hugged him _quite_ suddenly. The embrace was brief, but it was more than enough for Issei's face to start turning red.

Once she'd released him, Gabriel laid a hand on his shoulder, smiling. "Congratulations, Issei!"

"Err… thanks? I mean, sure, I achieved Balance Breaker, but that's not _that_ big of a deal, is it?"

The smile vanished, and Gabriel fixed him with a mildly bemused expression. "Issei… I don't think you're quite grasping how difficult it actually is to achieve that state."

"Is it usually all that difficult?"

Gabriel nodded slowly. "Issei, most Sacred Gear-possessing exorcists cannot Balance Break. Dulio only successfully attained his after years of work – and here you are, having unlocked yours mere months after awakening your Longinus. While I doubt you'll be able to use it again right away, the very fact that you've activated it at all is worthy of praise."

"What will I have to do to be able to activate it again?" Issei asked, much more concerned with the limitations than the potential.

In response, Gabriel's free hand pointed at Issei's left hand. Issei got the message.

Gabriel's hand left his shoulder. "I'm curious, Issei – you mentioned that you had six red wings?"

"And, weird as it sounds, two red halos, as well."

The King of Hearts nodded. "A subspecies Balance Breaker? Wonderful, Issei. I look forward to the day you can use it at will – I'm eager to see it for myself."

She waved her hand towards the hallway. "Anyway, I won't keep you any longer. Have a good evening, Issei."

* * *

After wishing the rest of the deck a good evening, Issei and Mirana walked down the hallway towards their respective rooms. As they walked, however, Issei slowed his pace slightly, just enough for Mirana to get a couple of steps ahead of him. The Ace of Hearts didn't notice this subtle action.

What she did notice was, when she was about to open her bedroom door, Issei tapping her shoulder.

When she turned to look, Issei's arms slid around her and he pressed his lips against hers.

Involuntarily, a tiny moan left her, and her arms moved of their own volition to hug the Jack back.

After a few seconds, Issei pulled back, a half-smile on his face. Mirana, meanwhile, had turned a brilliant shade of red as she absentmindedly began fingering her lips.

"Where did _that_ come from…?" Mirana asked, half-speaking to herself.

"Wanted to pay you back for yesterday," Issei said, winking. "Good night, Mirana."

The Jack then turned and walked back down the hall, entering his own room.

"Good night, Issei…" the Ace murmured, surprised and yet strangely happy that he'd been so bold. Unfocused and unrestrained by her years of training as a member of the Church, her thoughts began to drift as she entered her own room, closing the door purely out of habit.

She began to remember Issei as he had been earlier – how he had appeared with his half-dozen wings, all dyed red, with his twin halos illuminating him in crimson light. More than that, however, she remembered how wonderful he had appeared to her eyes, how much she…

An unpleasant sensation rippled through her back, and Mirana spread her wings out of instinct, while her thoughts jerked back to reality and her ingrained way of thinking.

She would swore that she saw her wings, for a fraction of an instant, flicker black.

* * *

 **"Well, Issei, it seems I owe you yet more congratulations."**

Issei was seated on his bed, having just removed one of his shoes, when the Red Dragon Emperor spoke.

"Oh, Ddraig, hey."

 **"I didn't think you'd achieve Balance Breaker for years. Gabriel was right, though – you won't be able to use it again, not without some outside assistance. You don't possess sufficient strength to use it on your own, at least not yet."**

Issei's thoughts flashed back to when Mirana had disabled the blackjack effect, and how his Sacred Gear had returned to normal the moment the Brave Saint card's effects had deactivated. "So, if I had Mirana's help, I might be able to use the Balance Breaker again?"

 **"Perhaps. I'm not sure. While it should be** _ **vastly**_ **easier to activate it now that you've achieved the state once, I'm uncertain if the system's strengthening will be enough to allow the Balance Breaker's use. You'd have to try it for me to be able to say for sure."**

Issei nodded. "Well, thanks anyway. I'll see if I can talk Lady Gabriel into arranging that sometime."

The room fell silent.

* * *

Issei yawned as he pulled off the clothing he wore. There wasn't any sense of relief to be able to remove the garments; the clothes were actually quite comfortable, despite their somewhat decorated appearance. After returning Ascalon to his drawer and making a mental note to get his garments washed to wipe them clean of Vali's blood, he stepped into the shower for a quick rinse.

Once he'd finished and dried himself off, the brunette Angel removed his clothing from the closet; while they weren't entirely clean, Issei knew he would attract suspicion wearing anything else home. It was when he was straightening his pants pockets by putting his hands into them that he stopped.

Beneath his fingers, he could feel the crinkle of paper.

When he withdrew his hand, he realized it was the note – the one he'd found inside _Will of a Holy Fire_ the previous day.

* * *

Issei was mildly relieved to find that Gabriel hadn't yet left the building when he came back down the hall. The sole female Seraph was still there, talking with Asia and Xenovia about something or other. Only later did he find out that the conversation was focused on Asia's Twilight Healing, and the nun's desire to achieve her own Balance Breaker.

The conversation came to a halt, however, when Issei walked back in, and Gabriel was the one to address him.

"Something you need, Issei?"

"Yes, Lady Gabriel," the Jack replied, holding up the note. "I, uh… found this in one of the library books. It's written in a language I don't understand and I'm wondering what it says."

The King of Hearts extended her hand. "Let me see it," she said.

After opening it, she nodded. "Oh, no wonder you couldn't understand it. It's Hebrew." She chuckled. "And I'd guess you don't speak a single word of that tongue."

Issei shook his head. "Not a one. What's it say?"

Gabriel looked back at the note, quickly scanning it.

And as she did, her expression rapidly changed from calmness and amusement to outrage and alarm.

"Lady Gabriel…?" Issei asked. "Is something wrong?"

Gabriel stood from her chair so quickly that the Jack was surprised it didn't snap apart. "Where did you find this?" she snapped, thrusting the note towards him.

"Uh… one of the books in the library."

"Show me."

* * *

Never had Issei seen Gabriel in such a way.

After one of the fastest flights he'd ever taken (much to the chagrin of his exhausted muscles), Issei's King practically dragged him through the records building and to the library upstairs.

At the top flight of stairs, Gabriel thrust the door open with such force that the entire room shook, startling many Angels. Without slowing, the King of Hearts marched up to the front desk and didn't bother giving the Angel behind the desk a chance to bow.

"Initiate the lockdown protocol," Gabriel said, her voice simultaneously controlled and incredibly angry.

"Yes, Lady Gabriel," the Angel said, before fiddling with something under the desk.

A moment later, Issei felt the same set of spells that hung oppressively over Second Heaven's prison block spring out, seemingly from nowhere. The brunette's stomach practically flipped.

Gabriel turned to Issei. "Which floor?"

"Fourth," Issei replied.

Once more, Issei was practically dragged along, this time in mid-air, by his King, who flew upwards with such speed that Issei could feel the wind howl in his ears – _indoors_.

Upon their landing, Gabriel didn't even slow down before she demanded the book's title.

"Err… _Will of a Holy Fire_."

"Start looking, Issei."

"Lady Gabriel, what's going on?" Issei asked, only having seen his King in this sort of state once before. Gabriel didn't even look up from the shelf she was checking as she responded.

"Issei, I gave you an order, and questioning me was not part of it."

The brunette gulped and started looking over the shelves, not wanting his King's anger focused on him – he'd already had that happen once before.

* * *

With two Angels desperately searching, it took no more than a minute to locate the book – moved once more, to yet another seemingly-random spot on the shelves.

After quickly flipping through all of its pages and noting where the book was on the shelf, Gabriel nodded.

"Issei, follow me."

They descended through the library as quickly as they had ascended it, Gabriel simply jumping over the side and landing at the bottom without so much as bending her knees. Issei, of course, took a somewhat slower method, reaching the lowest floor of the library a few seconds after his King.

She turned and nodded at him before addressing the Angel behind the desk.

"Lift the lockdown protocol long enough for my Jack and I to leave, then reactivate it the moment we are gone. If you fail to heed this instruction, you will be cast from Heaven. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Lady Gabriel!" the Angel replied in a terrified voice.

Gabriel indicated for Issei to follow her with her hand.

Issei practically had to run to keep up with her as she descended the staircase and left the records building.

Upon exiting the building, Gabriel turned and spoke once more.

"Issei, follow me. We are going to Sixth Heaven."

Both assumed the forms of crosses.

* * *

Upon their arrival in Zebel's entrance room, the King of Hearts immediately started walking, but spoke the moment Issei attempted to follow behind her.

"No, Issei. You will wait here. I need to alert the other Seraphs as to what is happening."

She vanished into the bowels of Zebel, leaving Issei wondering what the hell was going on.

* * *

For several minutes, Issei was left standing alone in Zebel, feeling more awkward and out-of-place by the second.

He briefly considered asking Ddraig, but he realized just as immediately that the Red Dragon Emperor wouldn't be able to answer anything.

Issei could feel his heart racing in his chest as he wondered just what on earth had made Gabriel so obviously furious. The brunette knew his thoughts were making the feeling worse, but he couldn't help it. While he knew he was far from the best Heaven had to offer, he was still Gabriel's Jack and desperately wanted to help resolve whatever problem he'd created.

By the time Gabriel appeared again, followed by several other Seraphs, including Uriel, Michael and Raphael, Issei was almost relieved.

Almost.

"Issei, don't bother bowing," his King said. "We don't have time for that. What we need to know is this – when did you find this note?" She held up the parchment.

"Yesterday," Issei said, feeling his confidence begin to shrink under the gaze of Heaven's leadership. It was all he could do to keep his voice steady.

Gabriel gave a hum, and raised _Will of a Holy Fire_ in her other hand. "How many times have you sought this book out?"

Issei swallowed. "Twice."

"Where was it the first time?"

The Jack quickly raced back over his memory. "Err… one of the front racks – yeah, it was the same one you were checking."

"And the second time?"

"It was… way in the back… I thought someone had filed it wrong… then again, we found it somewhere else tonight… can't be a coincidence…"

A few puzzle pieces suddenly came together, and he snapped his fingers. "That shouldn't be on the shelf at all, should it?" Issei asked, alarmed. "If no one's noticing it's constantly being put back in different places…"

"Oh, he's good," Raphael commented.

Uriel nodded at Issei's question and pointed at the book in Gabriel's hand. "That book was never approved for distribution among the populace of Heaven. The steps it describes are backwards – you don't start with fire and add light, you start with light and add fire. I'd assume you were struggling with it?"

"Yes, Lord Uriel, I was."

"That's probably why. I once meant to have Sandalphon write a proper version, but I never did..."

Michael turned and addressed the other Seraphs. "Now that we have confirmation of that, I want you all to go to the library in First Heaven – check every single floor for any book that shouldn't be on the shelf or any book that's out of place and bring every one of them here."

The Seraphs nodded and began to vanish, one by one.

Michael turned to face Issei. "As for you, Issei, it seems you won't be getting as much sleep tonight as you'd have hoped. We'll need you to stay for at least a little while, in case we come up with anything else to ask you."

"Lady Gabriel?" Issei called as Michael himself vanished. "What's going on?" He knew his voice had begun to sound mildly panicked, but he couldn't help it.

After taking a slow, deep breath, Gabriel walked over to Issei and rested both hands on his shoulders, squeezing very gently. She looked down the two-inch difference between them, and for the first time that night, Issei realized that there was a slight tear in Gabriel's eye.

"Issei… there are traitors in Heaven."

* * *

 _And cut_.


	56. It Can Always Get Worse

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei stood there, Gabriel's hands on his shoulders, her words echoing through his head like a can kicked against a brick wall. He'd perfectly understood every single word that had escaped his King's mouth, but they were not comprehended. It was impossible, surely. It simply could not be the case that Heaven had been betrayed. It had to be some sort of catastrophic misunderstanding.

The brunette Jack, however, communicated none of this – he didn't even know how he would have. Instead, his response was a quiet, desperate, disbelieving, "What?"

Gabriel's hands squeezed his shoulders, and she nodded, blinking the tear back. "Yes, Issei. It's true. A group of Angels has betrayed us." Unexpectedly, she pulled him close once more, her arms sliding around his back and squeezing him, her chin resting on his head. Issei didn't know whose comfort she was doing it for – his or hers.

"What...?" Issei said, his voice a hoarse whisper. "How?"

Gabriel pulled back to her prior position once more, still not releasing his shoulders. "This... _collection_ of Angels," Gabriel said, spitting the word "collection" as though it was a piece of rotten fruit, " _knew_ what was going to happen at the conference, down to who had betrayed our alliance – one Vali Lucifer. They said nothing. According to that note, they stood to benefit no matter what happened."

"How?" Issei asked, his tone beginning to return to its normal state. Despite that, however, Gabriel could hear a tiny flicker of anger emerging within his word.

"Apparently," Gabriel continued, "they were happy enough to have the attacker – Katarea Leviathan, I believe it was?"

Issei nodded, a gesture Gabriel returned. "Yes, they were happy enough to let _us_ dispose of Katarea Leviathan or Vali Lucifer. But going by what was written, they would have been equally happy to have Michael be killed by the same."

The Jack's mouth dropped open. "What? _Why_? He's the one keeping Heaven's systems running!"

"Indeed he is," Gabriel said, shutting her eyes. "And I doubt there is anyone in Heaven better suited to the task. Yet... some Angels have expressed discontent for his method of doing things. Most prominently, some simply cannot move forwards from the war as the Seraphs have. They seem to hate the very idea of coexistence with the Devils and Fallen Angels."

"Must've been a long millennium or so for them," Issei said dryly.

A humorless smirk cracked Gabriel's face, which vanished just as quickly. Another voice cut in, however, before she could speak again.

"So then, when are you going to tell him the _other_ part, Gabriel?"

There, just behind Gabriel, stood Raphael. Neither the King of Hearts or her Jack had felt him arrive, and Issei could only guess that the King of Clubs had hidden himself just as he had the day the brunette had faced Nero.

The female Seraph's head turned. "Raphael, is it truly necessary?"

"I'd say so," Raphael said without a hint of humor or happiness in his tone. "Especially given that it's rather pertinent information to him."

Gabriel looked back at her Jack, pain evident in her face. After a moment, however, she shook her head and looked Issei directly in the eye.

"Issei... if I'm being wholly honest... the traitors didn't just want to kill Michael. They also mentioned the "unworthy Saint" in the letter." The Seraph swallowed. "They... they wanted _you_ to die, Issei. There's no one else that would logically be referring to."

Issei's lips turned downward, and his next words came out in a rather depressing tone. "Wish I could say I was surprised. What, am I in the way of what they want to do?"

"In a roundabout way," Gabriel said. "They don't actually seem to want to get rid of the Brave Saint system. But I do know that..." Gabriel trailed off, gears obviously turning in her head, before seemingly reconsidering her statement and starting over. "Well, most of Heaven's Angels have accepted you as one of us, especially after that match with Nero, including the Seraphs."

Raphael nodded at that, in support of his sister's statement.

"But..." Gabriel continued, eyes shutting. "...a small number continue to reject you for your past as an unbeliever. I don't think they will _ever_ accept you. They seem to see you as a threat, in fact..."

Issei sighed. "Like I'd really try and bring down the Heaven that saved my life."

Gabriel gave a humorless half-grin.

* * *

After releasing him, Gabriel excused herself, while Raphael disappeared towards his chambers.

Now left alone in Sixth Heaven but unable to leave thanks to Michael's orders, Issei's thoughts hung on his King's words.

He knew he should feel some fear, some shock, that he was a target of this conspiracy.

Instead, there was nothing but a simmering anger – and it wasn't directed at that group's refusal to accept him. He didn't care for the thoughts of those who betrayed Heaven.

No, his anger was sparked anew by the thoughts of the terrorist attack.

In his mind, he saw Gasper Vladi, shaking and terrified as his power was ruthlessly exploited to the detriment of all. He pictured Azazel being forced to slice off his own arm in battle. He heard the voice of Vali, casually threatening the murder of his loved ones.

"Your wings are flickering right about now, judging by your aura."

Issei jumped, and his head flicked towards the source of the voice.

There, standing a few feet back, was an Angel he had never seen. The Angel's hair was the expected blonde, but scattered about itself in a careless way, with no thought or effort put towards grooming it. Mixed with his green eyes and thin face, the man exuded mischievousness that far surpassed Gabriel at even her most relaxed.

"How long have you been there?" Issei asked, trying to keep his tone even.

"About ten seconds. You really ought to calm down."

Issei's teeth ground. "My apologies, sir."

"Oh, no offense taken. I'm Raziel, by the way."

The moment these words exited the man's mouth, Issei tried to bow, purely out of instinct. Before he could fall six inches, however, he suddenly felt a hand beneath his shoulder, yanking him back to his feet.

The Jack looked up to find Raziel standing there, a half-grin on his face. "No need for that, Issei. I'm in the same mind as my brother Raphael."

"Lord Raziel, it's an honor," Issei said, attempting to sound formal purely out of instinct. All this earned was another laugh from the Seraph.

"Oh, you Brave Saints are always so stuffy. "Lord" this and "Lady" that... not that the other Angels are any better. Raziel, though."

Issei nodded. "As you wish... Raziel." He ran his tongue along the back of his teeth. "Not prefacing that with "Lord" just feels weird in my mouth." After a moment, the brunette shook his head. "So... _Raziel_... I assume you've... been informed?"

The anger was flaring again.

In response, Raziel's eyebrow raised, and the smirk fell off his face. "Oh, I've heard about our resident group of traitors. What _I'm_ more concerned with, though, is how they're doing it."

"I... don't understand," Issei said, very nearly adding "sir" to the end of it. "We _know_ how they're passing information-"

"No, no, no," Raziel said with a wave of his hand, cutting him off. "I mean, how haven't they fallen yet? If you've betrayed Heaven, you should have fallen, no questions asked."

Issei shrugged, helpless to answer that one. "Not a clue..."

Silence hung in the air for several seconds, and Issei hated it enough to break it with an off-topic tangent.

"Raziel, you have a Nine, don't you?"

The Seraph nodded. "Lucas Truman, one of Heaven's first Saints. He mentioned that you went and spoke to that Fallen Angel – the one who attacked you. He was the one who let you into the prison block." He whistled, the bangs of his hair flapping upwards slightly. "Probably about the point my opinion of you began to shift. Before then, I'd thought you were just a coward, but no – you're made of sterner stuff. _Much_ sterner stuff. I'd ask what was said between you two, but I doubt you'd want me to talk about it." He grinned once more. "I heard you did quite a number on the betrayer. Something about Albion begging you to not kill his host?"

"Something like that," Issei said quietly.

"Oh, how I wish I'd been there," Raziel said in a tone that sounded wistful on the surface, but harbored a touch of iron. "I could've used a good laugh."

It took Issei no more than a second to figure out why.

"You still hate both the Dragon Emperors?"

Raziel's face became neutral. "Hate's a strong word, but I'd be lying if I said I liked them. I watched hundreds, maybe thousands of my subordinates, my friends, fall to their claws and teeth." He looked towards Issei. "And before you ask, no, I don't hold you responsible for any of that."

The wild-haired Seraph began to pace, and when he spoke again, he'd jumped topics once more. "So, have you tried what Uriel told you yet?"

"Err... no, Raziel, I haven't, mostly because I don't recall him telling me anything."

Raziel sighed, slamming his own hand against his face in an exaggerated expression of frustration. "Think, Issei. He said that the book had it backwards. You remember the steps it laid out? Try them in reverse. See what happens."

Rather miffed and beginning to feel the effects of sleepiness hit him, Issei shook his head and spread his palm. This time around, he took the opposite approach, kicking himself all the while for not thinking of this himself.

Issei's eyes widened at the result.

In his hand, a red-white fire burned, the flame's edges tinged with the Holy element.

"I... I did it!" Issei cried, finally allowed joy at successful improvement.

Then, he remembered who else was in the room, and instantly felt mortified.

Raziel, for his part, was chuckling. "It's not like that's _hard_ to do. Even a low-level Angel shouldn't have difficulty with it if the instructions are correct. All it is just putting two elements together. The hard part was getting flames to obey you. How _did_ you manage that, anyway? I've known Angels with twice as many wings as you who can't do it."

After taking a few seconds to parse Raziel's words, which had been spoken as though the Seraph was a child on a sugar high, Issei winced. "Kokabiel and desperation. I'll leave it at that."

Raziel nodded, accepting that. "Form that again for me, will you?'

Once Issei had done so, the Seraph began inspecting it and promptly deflated Issei's success. "Well, it's crude, but it should be effective. Like a rusty spear for killing a man."

Issei, however, didn't get a chance to express his simmering frustration at this statement before another voice interrupted.

"Do you _have_ to make such comparisons, Raziel?"

A few feet behind them, and escaping both of their notices, a cross of white light had formed, from which stepped the unmistakable form of Uriel. The Seraph nodded at Issei. "I see you've met our youngest brother. If you're wondering, he's not usually this scatterbrained."

"Is he usually worse?" Issei asked dryly.

"Much," Uriel assured him.

"Well, don't mind me, then," Raziel said, walking off in a huff as though he'd been wounded, vanishing from the room as fast as he'd appeared and with about as much reason.

* * *

Once the youngest Seraph had gone, Uriel looked at the flames in Issei's palm and smiled. "Yes, that's it. Not perfect, certainly requiring further refinement, but not "crude", at least not by my definition."

Issei nodded. "Lord Uriel, may I ask a favor?"

"You may. What is it?"

"You command the Holy Flames, right?"

"Of course. You wish to see them, I take it?"

"Yes, sir," Issei said, nodding.

Uriel chuckled, though after the events of the evening, there wasn't much humor in his tone. "Very well. Step back a moment."

Once Issei had done so, the floor around the King of Diamonds began to shimmer and glow.

Half a moment later, the Jack of Hearts jumped at the sudden, billowing fire that blazed forth from the stone tiling of Zebel.

The flames, in contrast to Issei's were blue, specked with white, appearing as though the sky itself had fallen and was now burning. Odd though it might have been to say it, Issei found the fire genuinely beautiful.

Slowly, the flames coiled around Issei like a snake.

"Don't worry," Uriel said preemptively, "I'm not going to burn you."

Issei didn't have time to ask why this was necessary before he found out.

The circular walls of flame that had surrounded the brunette suddenly collapsed, and Issei was left in that most bizarre of situations where he was covered in flame without being hurt by them.

Then, from nowhere, Issei was completely consumed by pain.

* * *

"Issei? Issei! Wake up!"

The brunette's eyes slowly pulled open, ears ringing as they did so. His vision was blurry, and he couldn't recognize the person within it for several seconds. Once it cleared, however...

"L-Lady Gabriel!" Issei cried, jumping back to full alertness and snapping upwards. "Wh-what happened? Where's Lord Uriel?"

"Issei?" Gabriel said, the lone female Seraph holding him by one shoulder. "Why were you unconscious on the floor? Did you suddenly pass out?"

Issei shut his eyes and shook his head, trying to shake blood back into the arteries around his brain. Once he had, he looked up and down his body, and was quite shocked to find himself completely uninjured. "I... I don't know," he said shakily. "I asked him to show me the Holy Flames, and something weird happened."

"What?" Gabriel asked, concerned.

"Well... he surrounded me with them and then they collapsed on me. Didn't hurt for a bit, but then there was pain in my head and the next thing I know, here I am."

He looked around. The King of Diamonds was nowhere in sight.

Gabriel, for her part, appeared equal parts angry and perplexed. "Issei, I'm not saying you're lying, but if you're telling the truth, you have me confused. Why would he coat you in the Holy Flames? Are you sure that that's what happened?"

Issei shrugged helplessly. "That's what I remember."

Gabriel digested this, before she helped him to his feet. "Well, Issei, I'll be asking Uriel why he did that... but in the meantime, thank you for bringing this to our attention. I've been told by Michael to tell you that you may depart."

"Thank you, Lady Gabriel," Issei said, his tone exhausted, before he vanished into a cross.

* * *

In his own personal chamber, Uriel could feel Issei's aura vanish. He wasn't as skilled as Raziel – hell, no other Seraph was as skilled as Raziel – at reading auras, but he was better attuned to them than most.

His small trick had paid its dividend. While he didn't like deceiving those beneath him, he also knew that there was no way Issei would ever have let him do what he had done if he'd known how much it would hurt without any guarantee of success.

He looked down at the small, white crystal in his hand and smiled.

Gabriel was going to kill him for this, no matter how well it turned out.

* * *

When Issei appeared back in his room, his thoughts were entirely on sleep. He'd been through more than enough that day – a full day at school, then dealing with a peace conference that had been attacked by terrorists and then finding out they'd been betrayed. Then, Uriel had done something that had knocked him out cold, or he'd _reacted_ to something Uriel did that produced the same result. Issei couldn't be sure of which and at this moment, didn't care.

All he wanted was to feel his head hit the pillow and the oblivion of rest claiming his mind. He was angry over everything that had happened, but more than that, he was exhausted. He wanted to sleep, let himself be lost in a dream and deal with his problems tomorrow.

There is, of course, no rest for the weary.

"Issei?"

As soon as he heard his name, the brunette's heart stopped.

He knew the voice that had spoken it. He'd lived with them long enough that he would never forget it. The Jack turned, slowly, a lump of dread forming in his stomach.

There, at his desk, sat his mother, white as a ghost.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Between computer problems, finals and a general lack of inspiration, this took far longer than it should have to get finished._

 _Now, let's get off that subject and let's play a game – what do_ _ **you**_ _think Uriel did to Issei? (He said, implying he hasn't already planned out what he plans to have happen). If you guess right, you get absolutely nothing, not even an acknowledgment._


	57. Divulgence

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

For several seconds, Issei could only stare at his mother, totally at a loss as to what he should say. He could tell, just by the expression on her face, that his mother had seen him appear from a glowing cross. His mother, in reply, sat there, jaw agape, pale as a sheet.

"...we have a lot to talk about, Mom."

His mother didn't resist as he took her hand and gently pulled her from the chair.

* * *

Issei's parents both sat on the couch in their living room. Most evenings, this would have been a time to talk, read, watch television or any other number of "normal" activities. Tonight, however, they were both entirely fixated on their son, standing before them after drawing the curtains and locking the doors.

"I... guess you could say that I haven't been honest with you..." Issei started awkwardly.

"Understatement," his father said, his tone lacking even a hint of sarcasm; he was too shocked by what his wife had told him for that.

"So... I..." Issei said. "...what do you want to know first?"

His parents were silent for several seconds, and his mother's next words were stilted and stiff.

"What's... what's happened to you, Issei? What have you become?"

Issei swallowed, but he refused to duck his eyes downwards. He would not show any shame for being one of Heaven's Brave Saints.

"I..." Issei started. "I'm not human anymore."

His parents, to his relief, didn't react by screaming or accusing him of lying; instead, his mother chewed her lip while his father nodded slowly, eyes downcast in the way Issei had refused to let his be.

"Then what are you?" his father answered after nearly ten seconds.

Issei let out a long, slow breath. "A Brave Saint. An Angel in the service of Heaven."

As proof, the brunette let his four white wings flow from his back and his halo manifest itself, the light from the latter glinting off of everything metal in the room.

His parents' eyes went wide and their jaws dropped open, and they stayed that way for quite a while. Issei, for his part, decided during their silence that he would keep both wings and halo visible for the rest of the discussion.

"...can you fly?"

The brunette blinked, staring his mother down.

"You find out I'm an Angel and _that's_ your first question?" He sighed. "But yes, I can."

His mother shrugged, helpless.

"...how?" his father murmured. It was obvious that he was talking as much to himself as his son.

This time, Issei's eyes fell.

"...bit of a story..."

"We've got time."

The brunette's hands twitched, and his teeth began unconsciously nibbling on the insides of his gums. Then, he shut his eyes and took another long breath.

"Well... a few months ago... a girl asked me on a date. I... went with her. Then, it turned out she was a Fallen Angel sent to spy on me-"

"Fallen Angel?" his mother asked, her tone both frightened and curious.

"Angels who've "fallen" due to indulgence in sin," Issei explained. "Their wings turn black and they're banished from Heaven, unless they repent and are able to convince Heaven's leadership that they've reformed themselves in body, soul and mind. It's really, really hard to do. If you're wondering why I cleared my room of all... _that_ stuff... that's why. I don't need the temptation."

His parents nodded.

"Anyway," he continued, "she went against her orders – supposedly – and she..." He swallowed again, that same image of Raynare's sneer going through his head.

"She...?" his father echoed.

Issei's teeth clenched, the memory washing back through his mind while his body winced. He didn't want to discuss it – but there was no turning back.

"She rammed a spear through my chest and left me to die."

Both his parents let out horrified gasps, and the brunette swore he saw tears in their eyes. All he received as a verbal answer, however, was "Why?"

In response, he sighed – this was going to lead into yet more explanation. "Well, I have what's called a "Sacred Gear" - a tool created by God – sealed into my soul. She was sent to check if the Fallen Angel's reports were accurate, and was actually supposed to recruit me if it _was_ awake – killing me was to be reserved if I was genuinely out of control and posing a threat. She, though, didn't listen, and I'm still not sure why."

Issei's parents remained silent, their faces growing more frightened by the second, but he kept plowing on.

"Anyway, I was bleeding to death, and... well, I'm told I prayed while I was there, but I don't remember it. Memory's blurry. But... Lady Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphim actually answered it."

"An Angel answered you?" his father asked.

Issei nodded. "And... well, to save my life, she turned me into one of her Brave Saints."

Issei's parents were holding each other tightly, and his father's voice was thick with pain when he spoke again.

"What's that?"

"A Brave Saint?" Issei asked.

His father nodded.

"Well," Issei began, "they're creatures, mostly former humans, who've been transformed into Angels and are now in the service of the Angel who did that."

"So she enslaved you?" his mother whispered.

Issei shook his head. "No, no, no. It's nothing like that. She's even said that if I _want_ to fall – which I don't – she won't stop me. It just means that I have to obey her orders if she should give them to me. It's basically a military organization." The brunette chuckled slightly as he found himself using similar comparisons to the ones his own King had.

This, however, didn't assuage his parent's fears in the slightest.

" _Military?_ " his father mumbled. "You have to fight?"

Issei's humor vanished, and he slowly nodded. "If circumstances or my King dictates, then yes, I have to fight. I've already done quite a bit of it, as a matter of fact."

His father shook his head. "I- _we_ can't let you do that, Issei. You can't be out fighting at your age."

Issei sighed. "Dad, I get where you're coming from. I really do. But... well, there's no nice way of saying this. That decision's not yours to make. Heaven and Lady Gabriel's orders come first. That's my duty as her Saint, and there's nothing else to say about it."

"So you're willing to throw your lot in with someone who practically enslaved you?" his mother asked, suddenly angry and using that word again.

"Given how much I'm left to my own devices except for training, I'd hardly call it enslavement," Issei sternly pointed out, _not_ happy to hear Gabriel insulted but taking care holding his sleepiness-fueled anger in check. "She also saved my life and gave me a new lease on it. She's been incredibly kind to me and even helped get me back here when she could have just kept me in Heaven."

"You can obviously teleport. You didn't need her help for that."

"I didn't mean physically."

His father's eyebrow raised. "What did you mean, then?" His voice was calmer than his wife's, but there was still a flicker of anger.

Issei sighed. "Well, as there's Angels and Fallen Angels, there's Devils, too. They run Hell, basically. On the supernatural side of things, Kuoh pretty much belongs to them."

" _What?_ "

The brunette put a hand up. "The Devils aren't much different than humans in a lot of ways. They've got selfishness and some... _standout_ bastards among them, but that's true of all three groups."

The thought of the traitorous Angels crossed his mind again, but Issei did everything he could to shake that thought away. His focus needed to be here and now.

"But, since we were at an armistice, I had to get permission from the Devil Kings the Devils here are connected to in order to come back. If I'd just wandered in, I might have started a war. Lady Gabriel and Lord Michael managed to get that done and let me come home to you two. You should be thanking her, if anything."

"But what if something happens-" Issei's father started to say, before his son cut him off.

"I get along fine with Kuoh's Devil population. And there's now a treaty in place, so there's nothing to worry about."

"When did that happen?"

"About two hours ago," Issei replied, grinning momentarily. "That's where I was, if you're wondering. Well, there and Heaven to meet up with Lord Michael. He's in charge of Heaven, basically. Oh, and the guests we had earlier? All three of them were Devils. Sirzechs is the Great Devil King Lucifer. As you can see, very nice people."

Issei's father fell silent, and his mother bit a knuckle.

"Now, Mom, Dad, I understand it's a lot to take in. But... I _am_ still your son. I'm still Issei. And I do still love you two, whatever happens." He exhaled slowly. "It's just... well, I'm saddled with a new set of priorities and I'm dealing with a different power structure. And sometimes, that means I have to put those priorities above what you two want for me. Not because I hate you guys, but..."

Issei's sentence trailed off.

Quiet hung in the room like an uninvited guest, Issei's mother alternating between looking furious and like she was about to burst into tears. The Hyoudou patriarch, on the other hand, appeared contemplative, turning over his son's words in his mind.

"...can I ask you a few things?" his father asked after around a minute.

"Of course," Issei replied.

"...have you ever killed anyone?"

At that, the teenage Angel's memory went back to earlier that night, and his fighting of the magicians. He'd probably killed twenty people at the conference, and the thought didn't bring any emotion to his head. It was the heat of battle against willing opponents.

Then his thoughts trailed further backwards to the Kokabiel incident, and he mentally shuddered.

After a few seconds, Issei replied with a nod.

Issei's father appeared downcast at this answer. After a few seconds, however, he moved on to the next question, his tone devoid of emotion. "How long do Angels live?"

"If the Seraphim are anything to go by... practically forever unless something kills them."

His father nodded again. "Who was that young man who brought you home?"

"Dulio Gesualdo, another one of Heaven's Saints. He played the part just so I wouldn't have to have this conversation." He exhaled. "Kind of wishing I hadn't bothered."

"How many other... "Brave Saints" are there? How are they picked?"

"Uh... at least seventy, I think. Lady Gabriel's been somewhat slower to use her cards than most Seraphs. As for how they're picked? Well... most are former exorcists. And I'm the only Saint in Heaven who wasn't involved with the church in some capacity."

"Exorcists?" his father asked, confused. "Don't they just drive out demons with Bible reading?"

Issei wanted to laugh. "No. Exorcists are soldiers, warriors of the church, and I mean that in the most literal way possible. They kill Devils, Fallen Angels, vampires, monsters... pretty much any supernatural creature that's harmed humans. And they don't use a Bible – they tend to prefer swords and guns. The people who train me in combat? Both of them are former exorcists. That's where I really go in the afternoons – Heaven."

His head tipped to one side at his parent's expressions. "You don't look too surprised."

The Angel's parents shrugged simultaneously, but his mother answered for both of them.

"Issei, you teleport into the house in a cross of light, tell us you've become an Angel and proceed to reveal that you have wings and have been fighting and killing for months." She shook her head. "Do you think there's anything left we couldn't believe?"

The brunette looked down and didn't answer.

Slowly, shakily, his father stood up and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Issei... you've given us a lot to turn over, and it's late. You look like you've been through hell yourself. Just... get some sleep."

With that, Issei left his parents there to talk long into the night on what had happened to him.

* * *

Uriel didn't remain in his personal quarters long enough for his sister to come in and start asking questions.

Unfortunately, thousands of years gave his sister an easy time finding him, and soon enough, he felt Gabriel's aura as a knock came on the door to his laboratory.

"Come in, Gabriel."

The door practically exploded out of the way, and Uriel prepared himself for arguing.

"Uriel, what did you do to my Saint?"

"Not even a hello?" the King of Diamonds asked playfully as he tinkered with the white crystal's structure.

"What have you done to him?" Gabriel demanded once more.

The male Seraph sighed. "If I tell you, will you let me work in peace? I did what I did for your Jack's benefit, after all."

"And just what is it that you've done?"

Another sigh exited Uriel, and he prepared himself for the reckoning.

"I extracted most of the essence of his magical reserves."

The normally composed aura of the King of Hearts was feeling very, _very_ angry right now.

"So you performed what could have proved a lethal procedure upon my Jack without his consent simply for the sake of studying his magical energies?" Gabriel hissed.

Uriel shot her an annoyed glance. "The mortality rate for less-than-total extraction is fractions of a fraction of one percent. He's more likely to die from shark attack or lightning strike. You know that."

"I do indeed."

Icy gusts suddenly blasted through the room, swirling around the female Seraph in a vortex.

"Gabriel!" Uriel shouted as items were knocked over and papers scattered about. "You're ruining my laboratory!"

"Fittingly."

The gales stopped, the air stilling very suddenly.

"You tore out most of my Jack's ability to use magic at a _very_ delicate time," Gabriel snarled. "He'll need every bit of his own magical reserve in the coming days and you took it from him."

"With the explicit goal of returning it to him, massively increased," Uriel countered. "I've already done it with several of my Saints. Nero is next in line."

"Why did you need _his_ if you've already done this multiple times?" Gabriel demanded.

"For the same reason Raphael might want to know a patient's blood type before performing a transfusion," Uriel said flatly. "Every person's magical energies are slightly different. That's why every person's rendition of a spell, even from the same instructions, is in some way their own. Attempting to imbue someone's soul with magical energies that aren't their own often has lethal consequences. And your Jack needs a continuous supply of the stuff, not some one-off charge."

Gabriel hated to admit it, but Uriel was right on the last point. That didn't completely kill her anger, however.

"Why then, perform it on him without simply asking permission first?"

"Because having your magical reserves pulled out of you is excruciatingly painful, as we saw with Issei – he didn't even get the chance to scream before he fell unconscious. And every second I'm not working on this is a second later it's going to be before the reserves get expanded. Trying to get his consent would've wasted even more time."

With that, Uriel asked that Gabriel leave; she did in a huff, no doubt off to complain to Michael.

The King of Diamonds grinned to himself as the door slammed shut.

He hadn't told her a single lie, but he'd omitted something else he'd taken, and his _other_ reason to not get Issei's consent.

* * *

Issei looked around an environment that he'd seen before.

Flames licked everything in sight, which wasn't much. He didn't seem to be standing on anything, either; instead, his feet were placed on a solid point somewhere in the inferno.

Far off in the distance, the brunette could see Ddraig in the fire.

"Oh, Ddriag, hey!"

 **"Been quite a while since I've manifested myself in this form."**

"Yeah, guess it has. I guess that means I'm dreaming right now?"

 **"You are. I didn't manifest myself for idle chit-chat, though. I have some information for you. Two things."**

"Lay it on me."

 **"You've been altered again, and three guesses as to who's behind it. An enormous chunk of your magical reserves has been torn out of you."**

Issei raised an eyebrow. "Won't it just regenerate?"

 **"Not without the essence, it won't."**

"The essence?"

 **"It's the thing that lets you regenerate your reserves and decides how large they are. Most of yours is missing as of now."**

" _What?_ " Issei cried.

 **"It's not completely gone,"** Ddraig elaborated. **"But most of it is, and that will restrict the amount of magic you have access to severely."**

Issei's teeth ground, and he could just see Uriel's visage hanging in the flames. Right then and there, Issei vowed to throttle Uriel when he got back to Heaven until the Seraph gave up the ghost.

"What's that mean for me, then?"

 **"I'd advise you keep your head down until you figure out what the hell you need to do to get the essence back. You should have enough for teleportation and maybe some flames, but hold off on the swords."**

The brunette nodded, internalizing Ddraig's words. "And uh... what's the other thing?"

Ddraig's gaze seemed to grow darker as he said his next words. **"I didn't even notice until after you'd fallen asleep, but you weren't the only one affected. Whatever Uriel did... a fragment of the Boosted Gear has gone with it."**

Issei's jaw dropped open.

 **"Yes. You needn't worry about that, however. The Boosted Gear should still function without issue. What I'm more concerned with is what, exactly, Uriel is up to. Find out for me, won't you?"**

"Will do."

 **"I'll release you, then. Pleasant dreams, Issei."**

"Same, Ddraig."

The manifestation of Issei's soul shut its eyes.

* * *

 _And cut._


	58. A Few Considerations

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Vali Lucifer hadn't expected to open his eyes again, at least not with a body that was still intact. Awaken he did, however, with the feeling of gravel and rock underneath his pained flesh.

As his eyes pulled open, he was mildly confused at why he seemed to be seeing gold, or about the weight that was on top of him.

Then, he realized just who it was.

"Morning, sleepyhead."

"Morning, Kuroka."

The nekomata shifted around atop the half-Devil, her face an inch from his and her breasts pressed obscenely against his bare chest. "You took a beating last night. What happened?"

"Mind moving?"

She didn't even begin to remove herself from his skin; in fact, she pressed herself harder against Vali. "Since you're already shirtless... we could-"

"I've already told you no, Kuroka."

The reincarnated nekomata pouted in an attempt to appear cuter, an effort utterly lost on Vali. "I saved your life, you know..."

"And I thank you for that. But I'm not interested in doing that."

Kuroka grimaced before sliding off of him, and Vali slowly rose to his feet, his muscles screaming and complaining all the way. Once he had, he looked down at his bare skin.

He supposed he wasn't surprised at the deep scars that covered his flesh, each and every one a precise slash. Raising his right hand, the Lucifer descendant saw the deepest of the lot, running from the center of his middle finger all the way up to near the edge of his elbow. As he remembered what created that cut, he grimaced.

"You're finally up?"

Vali turned to see Bikou, seated on a rock about twenty feet away, back facing the White Dragon Emperor. Only at that moment did Vali see where he was, exactly.

The half-Devil stood atop an enormous mesa in the underworld, an entire forest spreading out in all directions as far as his eyes could see. Atop the mesa itself were several large rocks, atop the largest of which Bikou sat.

"Yeah, I suppose," Vali replied as he walked towards the Monkey King, who was twirling his staff in his hand absentmindedly. "Rather surprised that I did, though..."

"You were almost killed by that bastard Angel," Bikou spat. "He was about to slice your head open when I showed up."

Vali shook his head. He wasn't used to that sort of one-sided punishment from _anyone_ , not even Azazel or Tobio. In seconds, he, the mighty descendant of Lucifer, the strongest White Dragon Emperor, had been thoroughly thrashed by the Jack of Hearts, utterly crushed beyond any denial. That, however, was not what he was thinking about, and Albion was the one who voice his thoughts.

 **"I do not think so."**

Vali's eyes instinctively flicked towards his back. "What do you mean, Albion?"

 **"I do not think he was about to kill you."**

"That's a very helpful clarification," Bikou said, eyes rolling.

 **"He had been until I started talking and asked him not to."**

Vali's eyebrow arched. "Given the state he was in, I doubt that. He wasn't in the mood to spare anyone."

 **"Well... I suppose I** _ **begged**_ **him not to..."**

"You?" Kuroka said, having walked over to join the two on the rocks.

"That's not like you, Albion," Vali said, agreeing with the nekomata.

 **"It is but the truth. I pointed out that you had been defeated – do not even try to say you were not – and asked him to refrain... though I wonder if it was** _ **my**_ **words that convinced him. He had more than ample opportunity to kill you after you lost consciousness."**

Vali bit his lip. "Then thank you, Albion. Though... it's not like you _had_ to do that."

 **"You and I are partners, Vali. I will not see you slaughtered if I might take action to prevent it."**

The half-Devil didn't answer that, instead looking over at Bikou, who threw something at him.

Catching it easily, Vali turned over the plastic-wrapped item in his hand and realized what it was.

After unpacking his replacement shirt and jacket and thanking Bikou for the replacements, he activated his Sacred Gear and flew high into the air.

For more than an hour, he hung there, turning Issei Hyoudou's words over in his mind, analyzing his statements in contrast to Vali's belief.

 _There's no fate in this, Vali._ Of all the statements that stuck out at him, that one was perhaps among the most poignant.

It had to be false, of course. They were the Red and White Dragon Emperors. Of course their battle was fated. But Issei had addressed that as well.

 _They fought because they wanted to_. The statement had been essentially the same regarding both dragons and wielders.

 _There's nothing forcing us to do the same._ The more Vali thought this statement over, the more some part of him began to wonder if that was true.

They were opposite Sacred Gear wielders, members of separate factions and holding opposite allegiance. And yet Issei had been perfectly willing to resolve their differences peacefully, only intervening violently upon those he cared about being threatened. Vali had called him a coward, yet his actions not two minutes later had shown that to be completely false.

Then, right when the Angel had had him on the ropes, he'd stopped. He'd allowed the Lucifer descendant to survive.

That, more than anything, shook him. He'd been told by Albion for years about the fate of their battle and how he could expect absolutely no mercy, and yet the wielder of the Boosted Gear had refused him until others were in danger. He had not killed his rival as Vali had believed he would.

The Lucifer descendant couldn't decide who that said more about – Issei Hyoudou, the reincarnated Angel, or the Heavenly Dragons.

* * *

Elsewhere, Vali's opponent from the previous night was in the midst of awakening just as Vali had been.

Issei's eyes were still quite heavy with sleep when the buzzing of his alarm clock began, ripping him from rest he so desperately desired. He dressed in a daze, struggling to stay awake as he did so. The Angel could barely remember what had happened the night before.

He was swiftly reminded when he reached the living room.

Issei's parents had clearly not slept at all during the night, the two still being seated in the living room where they had been when the brunette had gone to bed. Deep wrinkles were etched beneath their eyes, but they clearly couldn't have been more awake despite that. As Issei entered the room, they turned to look at their son, neither speaking.

"Morning, Mom, Dad..." the Angel said uncomfortably.

They didn't respond.

"...err... still surprised, I guess?" Issei said, trying desperately to lighten the mood and immediately regretting his word choice. His parents, however, simply nodded.

"Issei," his father finally said after several seconds, "...why didn't you just tell us to begin with?"

"I didn't want to drag you two into it," Issei replied sadly. "I mean... how could you two ever relax if you knew? Maybe that was the wrong choice, but..." His sentence trailed off, not sure how to finish.

His mother and father nodded mutely, but no one in the room could think of anything else to say.

Issei wound up skipping breakfast that morning.

* * *

The school day was long and utterly boring; there was but a week left before the summer break began, and Issei being half-asleep the entire time didn't help. How he didn't doze off in class was a mystery that he hadn't solved even years after the fact.

When he arrived home, Issei was not entirely surprised to find that his parents had finally moved, nor at the snoring he heard from behind their bedroom door as he passed it.

All he could hope for was that they were coming to terms with what had occurred.

After depositing his bags, he ascended to Heaven.

* * *

"Halt. Identify yourself."

Issei didn't do the first, and the guards of First Heaven's gate couldn't be bothered to force him to. They knew him too well for that. Instead, Issei just spread his four wings and raised his right hand.

"Issei Hyoudou, Jack of Hearts."

"Welcome to Heaven, Issei Hyoudou."

Issei chuckled mirthlessly to himself as he pushed the gate open. He'd been through this exercise more times than he cared to count, yet the guards always used the exact same tone, employed the exact same consummate professionalism each and every time.

After the quick flight required to reach the Hearts building, Issei dragged the door open, still partially asleep.

* * *

It was only several seconds after he stepped inside that Issei realized that the building was unusually quiet.

The lengthy hall that emptied into the common area seemed to take much longer to cross than normal, and when he finally reached it, there was only one person standing there. Immediately, he bowed.

"Rise, Issei," Gabriel said immediately. "There's a matter I intended to discuss with you last night, but it evidently slipped my mind when I saw that you had passed out. In addition, there is another problem I need to inform you of, concerning what my brother did to you."

"What is it, Lady Gabriel?" Issei asked.

"It has to do with the traitorous Angels," Gabriel said. "It's a simple matter, but I must warn you – _do not_ reveal what you have discovered to anyone. We cannot risk the panic and, worse, potential recruiting of new Angels to the traitor's mission that that information would cause. The traitors no doubt already know that they have been discovered. They have probably known since you found the note that their communications have been intercepted, and they certainly know after last night."

Issei nodded. "Did you find anything else?"

"Unfortunately not," Gabriel said. "In any case, I must also warn you of the second piece of information, based on what Uriel did to you."

"Steal the essence of my magical energies?" Issei asked knowingly. Gabriel's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"You know about that?"

"Ddraig told me."

Issei could tell just from the expression on her face that Gabriel would likely leave blood sprayed across Zebel if he told her the second bit. Wisely, he kept his mouth shut.

Gabriel nodded. "I see. But you do understand me, then?"

"Yes, my Lady. I'm confused, though – _why_ did he do that?"

"He says he wishes to expand your magical reserves," Gabriel said, an annoyed look crossing her face. "Apparently, he's already conducted this same procedure on a number of his Saints, and decided that since you're one of the traitor's targets, you'd best receive it, too."

"Without asking _me_ , naturally," Issei said.

"Oh, of course not," Gabriel said dryly. "You might protest against pain."

"After what happened with Kokabiel? I doubt it." Issei shook his head. "When's that going to be done?"

"He claims it will take a few days. I don't think I need to tell you to stay out of trouble as best you can – and do _not_ reveal that fact if you can avoid it."

Issei nodded. "I understand, my Lady." He didn't bother mentioning that Ddraig had already told him all of this.

Gabriel nodded back. "Now that that's settled out, I want to know how _you're_ holding up, Issei."

The brunette's head tipped to one side. "I'm mostly fine, Lady Gabriel. Why do you ask?"

"You look like you barely slept, for one thing." Gabriel's head tipped to one side, a knowing look in her eyes. "Did something happen after you returned home, Issei?"

A sigh escaped the brunette. He knew that there was no chance she wouldn't realize it if he lied, and an angry Gabriel was never something he wanted.

"My parents found out what's happened to me last night. They caught me when I came home. I ended up telling them everything. I think they're still in shock."

"Well, I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later," Gabriel said, nodding before her face shifted to an expectant countenance. "You _did_ make it clear for them that Heaven must come first?"

"Yes, Lady Gabriel, I did. They, uh... weren't too happy about it, though. My mother even tried to call tenure as a Brave Saint enslavement."

A sad look creased Gabriel's beautiful face. "I'd hope you don't see it that way."

"Not at all!" Issei reassured her. "It's got its ups and downs, but I wouldn't trade it for anything."

Gabriel smiled at that. After patting him on the shoulder (leaving Issei as red as ever), she changed the course of the conversation.

"Now then, Issei, have you spoken with Ddraig about your Balance Breaker?"

Issei nodded. "He said that the Brave Saint system might be enough of a power boost to use it, but the second it goes off..." He waved his hand and a frown came across his face. "The Balance Breaker will deactivate. I'm not strong enough to maintain it on my own yet."

The Seraph shrugged. "Well, one step at a time." Another smile came across her face. "Luckily, I asked Mirana to remain here today. She can help us with that. I _do_ still want to see that subspecies of yours." She turned and gestured with her hand. "Fetch Mirana for me, will you? I'll meet you at the field."

With that, she turned again and strode gracefully from the entrance hall and towards the exit.

* * *

The loud cracking of knuckles on wood echoed through the hall. Issei stood before Mirana's door, awaiting the Ace of Hearts to answer so that they could walk to the training field.

Behind the door, he heard shuffling and Mirana's voice call "coming!" a few seconds before it opened. When it did, Mirana's head poked out.

"Afternoon, Mirana," Issei started. "Lady Gabriel said she wanted you at the field. You need a few minutes?"

She shook her head. "No, just let me slip on a pair of shoes."

The door closed again, and Issei heard more shuffling, rapider this time. There was the rustling of fabrics, then silence.

A moment later, Mirana stepped out the door, and Issei was momentarily made silent as he looked her over.

"Issei?" the Ace said, tipping her head to one side. "Something wrong?"

At that, Issei snapped back to reality, and he furiously shook his head. "N-no! It's just..." He found himself blushing as he took in the sight of Mirana. In truth, there was only one trait that was different about her compared to any other day, but that one trait seemed to take her already-lovely features and magnify them thrice.

"Just?" Mirana asked, a teasing grin coming to her face.

"Just..." Issei stammered, "...anyone ever tell you that you're even more beautiful without your hair tied up?"

Mirana blinked, and the teasing grin disappeared, replaced by a slight blush of her own. "Err... no, they haven't."

"W-well... y-you are." Issei was doing everything in his power to keep his thoughts in check at this point and kicking himself for saying something so corny.

"You think so?" Mirana asked.

"Y-yeah, definitely."

"Then... thank you, Issei."

"Uh... well, I suppose we should get going..."

Mirana nodded rather cutely. "You want to fly, or...?"

Issei slowly, awkwardly shrugged. "If you want to walk, I'm fine with that. I-I don't care too much."

Mirana nodded again. "Walking it is, I guess..."

They hadn't even made it out of the building before she had gently taken his hand.

* * *

"Now then," Gabriel said, "I want the two of you to enter blackjack."

Mirana, Issei and Gabriel stood in the center of First Heaven's field, each one armed with a blunted sword, the Ace and Jack facing one another. Each had forced back their thoughts and their blushing as best they could to better focus on the task in front of them.

On Gabriel's command, the two released the power of their respective cards.

The burst of power was the same as it had been those hours earlier, during the Peace Conference, but Issei refused to bask in the feelings of euphoria. Instead, he summoned the gauntlet.

"So, uh, Ddraig...? This enough?"

 **"Welsh Dragon!** _ **Over Booster!**_ **"**

Every person in the room had about half a second to process the massive boost in Issei's aura before the female Angels were blinded by a crimson flash.

After a few moments, Gabriel spoke.

"Well, I suppose we can count that hypothesis as confirmed."

From Issei's back extended the half-dozen crimson wings, while above his head the intersected red halos bathed the Jack of Hearts in vermilion light.

For several seconds, silence reigned once more as the King of Hearts paced around her Saint, inspecting him from every angle. Once she had, she broke into a smile.

"I can certainly see why Mirana seems to like this form." At those words, Gabriel shot a teasing glance at Mirana, whose cheeks were presently turning about the color of Issei's wings.

"Ddraig?" Issei asked. "If I turn off the Brave Saint system, will this shut off?"

The Red Dragon Emperor's reply was a curt, **"Yes."**

Gabriel rubbed her chin thoughtfully at that. "If I had to guess, Issei, you would normally have to grant some sort of boon to Ddraig in order for him to have enough power to grant you this state. The Brave Saint system seems to bearing the burden of that sacrifice – this Balance Breaker isn't yet in a complete state."

Issei's eyebrow turned upwards. "What do you mean "complete"?"

"Simply that it can't yet be used while relying solely on your own strength, but you knew that already, didn't you?"

Issei nodded.

"Yes, I thought so," Gabriel said. "Now then, Issei, since I've got you in this state, I'd like to see something. Mirana has told me that your speed in this state, after boosting up, is incredible. Godlike, she said. I'd like to see how accurate that is."

"So you want me to boost up as much as possible and then just go to town on you?" Issei asked knowingly.

In response, Gabriel shrugged. "Pretty much."

Issei looked down at his left hand. "So, Ddraig, how do I... do that, exactly? It just seemed to happen automatically last time."

 **"Sacred Gears work according to your will. You should be able to figure it out from there. I'll cut it off once you can't take anymore."**

"So I basically have to "want it"?"

 **"Yes."**

"Take a deep breath, Ddraig."

 **"BOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOST-"**

For close to ten seconds, this chant was called over and over again, until a similar situation to the night before had been recreated – the floor was cracking beneath Issei's feet from the sheer force his aura exerted, and the air surrounding him was turning a distinct green shade.

"Mirana, move up to the stands, please," Gabriel said.

After the Ace had scampered off, the Seraph turned to Issei and smiled.

"Come at me, my dear Jack."

* * *

For a few seconds, Issei quietly sized up Gabriel, trying to find the best route to attack her with.

Then, he moved towards her at a speed that exceeded even the speed he had employed against Vali the night before, sword poised to strike.

Unfortunately for Issei, the tables had turned, and by the time he arrived at the space less than ten feet away where Gabriel was, she was gone.

A moment later, he felt a sword lightly tap the back of his head.

"Behind you."

In a fraction of an instant, Issei had swung the sword in his hand around himself, attempting to strike Gabriel, but she effortlessly dodged out of the way.

"Over here!"

Issei's head spun to find Gabriel on the opposite side of the arena, waving impishly at him.

 **"BOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOST-"**

Issei knew that he was pushing himself past his breaking point with this many boosts, but he flatly didn't care.

The increase in power ultimately made no difference, however, and Gabriel was long gone when he got there.

The bout continued this way for nearly a minute, until Gabriel suddenly stopped in the center of the arena.

"Now then, Issei, come here and stand directly in front of me."

The Jack obeyed, crossing the field in an instant.

Gabriel smiled. "Now then, I want you to transfer that built-up power to your arm. All of it."

"...why, my Lady?" Issei asked, rather confused.

"I want to see how hard you can punch with it, of course," Gabriel said, acting as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"If you insist," Issei said. "Ddraig?"

 **"TRANSFER! Crack her one for me, partner!"**

Issei's arm suddenly felt as though it was being powered by a jet engine, and he swung with all the considerable force and speed he could muster.

When his fist met Gabriel's palm, he fully expected that he was about to separate his King's hand from the arm. And as usual, he was proven wrong.

The field ripped and tore from the collision force, several of the seats in the stands collapsing and cracks appearing in the walls. Despite the immense power of the strike, however, Gabriel did not even flinch whilst stopping his fist cold.

"An excellent strike, Issei."

She lanced out and struck him in the chest. While the blow was fairly light by her standards, her Jack still fell over from the strike, though nothing was seriously injured as a result.

Then, the drain of Transfer kicked in, and Issei suddenly felt so weak that he could barely stand.

"Ddraig," he got out between coughs, "remind me to never do that again."

 **"Noted. I'm disabling the incomplete Balance Breaker, Issei – your body can't take more stamina drain. Get ready."**

When the Balance Breaker disengaged, Issei wanted to curl up into a ball and pass out on the field.

When Gabriel had insisted on deactivating the Brave Saint system, Issei reconsidered and began desiring someone to call a hearse.

He barely stayed awake long enough to fall asleep in his bed in First Heaven.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Merry Christmas and Happy Shut the Fuck Up, everybody._


	59. A Simple Meal

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei woke up with three things – hunger, thirst and a desire to go straight back to sleep.

As he pulled himself from the sheets, it occurred to him that he'd fallen asleep in his training outfit without even crawling beneath the comforter. Once the smell had been washed from his skin by the hot water of his shower, he jumped back into his school uniform. He didn't, however, leave immediately.

This was due to the note on the back of his door written in his own language.

 _Come out to the gathering hall when you wake up! The deck and I unanimously voted that they want to have dinner with you. That's an order!_

 _~ Gabriel_

The brunette grinned. He hadn't done that in months, and he'd only ever shared a breakfast with Xenovia. Issei also doubted his parents would be in any mood to make any dinner for at least the next couple of days. And dinner with his fellow Saints would be a great way to get his mind off of the traitors...

At that thought, the grin vanished just as quickly. Shaking his head, he opened his door and walked out towards the central hall. The pace was a leisurely one. Having waited for the afternoon, he figured that the rest of the deck wouldn't die from waiting a few more seconds. It also didn't help that his impromptu nap hadn't entirely fixed his exhaustion.

Of course, it wasn't a long walk from his room to the central hall, so it made little difference besides. As he walked towards the main hall, a mouthwatering combination of aromas hit his nose.

Stepping into the hall, Issei could see Gabriel, seated at the head of the table. Scattered about the rest of the table was the rest of the Hearts deck, without much thought or organization to how they were seated. To Gabriel's right sat Dulio, while to Mirana's right and left, there was Irina and Abigail.

Near the opposite end of the table compared to Gabriel, an unfamiliar woman sat.

The table itself, meanwhile, was set with everything but the kitchen sink – three entire hams, french bread, numerous side dishes from half a dozen cultures and countries. The smell they gave off was intoxicating now.

"The sleepy one finally deigns to join us," Griselda said the moment he emerged into the hall. Her face, however, was cracked in an obvious smile as she did so, and Issei knew that she wasn't angry with him in the slightest.

"About time you woke up," Dulio grumbled. His hand swept over the set table. "Some of us are hungry, here!"

"The food's been out but a minute, Dulio," the unfamiliar young woman said. "It's still steaming hot, don't worry."

"That doesn't change the point that we're starving."

"I think that's mainly you," the young woman said. She turned to face Issei, and Issei finally got a clear view of her. She was fairly attractive, with brown hair tied up in a simple ponytail. If he had to guess, Issei would have said she was in her very early twenties. Her expression appeared quite sleepy, despite her obvious alertness. "Jessica Lagerkvist, by the way. Lord Sandalphon's Queen. Good to meet you, Issei Hyoudou."

Issei nodded. "Good to meet you as well, Jessica. I'll assume you're a former exorcist."

"Indeed."

"What's Lord Sandalphon's suit, by the way? I've never checked."

"Clubs."

"I see," Issei said.

After a moment's consideration, he took a seat next to Jessica.

The Queen of Clubs didn't regard this with any special focus. That job went to the Ace of Hearts.

"Oh?" Mirana asked. Her tone was mirthful, while her face pulled into an innocent smile. "Thinking of trying to go after Jessica now? Even after what _I_ did? Issei I'm hurt!" Her hands reached up to cross over her heart, while her facial features twisted into a mock pout.

"I _did_ go out of my way to get even with you on that one, Mirana," Issei said, grinning.

"What?" Jessica asked. She turned and lazily shot a look at Issei. "What's this about, exactly?"

"Mirana kissed Issei a couple of days ago," Dulio said, impatiently looking at the food. "Can we get to saying grace so we can eat?"

"Wait, you did _what_?" Abigail asked.

"Kissed him," Griselda said. Her look had taken a decidedly annoyed appearance. "And what is this about "getting her back", Issei?"

"I... _took the initiative_ after the peace conference," Issei said.

" _Issei!_ " Griselda cried, extremely frustrated with the brunette's continued irreverence towards this topic. "Have I or have I not tried to instruct you to control this rampaging lust of yours?"

" _Food_ ," Dulio said.

"Perhaps it would be prudent to begin the meal," Gabriel said, " _before_ the Joker decides to freeze all of us solid?" She was obviously trying not to laugh at her Saints in the midst of argument. "Dulio, you may lead."

It was the fastest grace Issei had ever heard said, and Issei swore he heard different words coming from several of the people seated. He couldn't remember if different Christian sects had different variants on this prayer.

He was too far away to hear Gabriel's, either, which disappointed him; hers was likely the most interesting.

It also seemed that the moment the grace finished, Dulio's plate had completely filled itself. Heck, before Issei had managed to finish putting food on his plate, half of Dulio's was already gone. Inexplicably, Issei found himself laughing.

"Something funny, Issei?" Xenovia asked, looking up from a piece of ham she was cutting.

"Not really," Issei said. "Just remembering the first time I met Dulio. Griselda and I had been talking for about a minute when he showed up with three boxes of curry. Something like a welcoming gift, I guess – and ended up eating Griselda's."

"Hey, it's not like _she_ was going to eat it," Dulio said, looking at Griselda. "No need to waste food."

"There is also no need to indulge in gluttony," Griselda retorted, " _or_ in lust." She looked at Issei for the second piece.

"All I did was kiss Mirana," Issei said, "and she took the initiative there."

Abigail was looking back and forth between the Ace and the Jack, eyes wide. She'd barely eaten since the meal started. "You two really kissed?"

Issei and Mirana each nodded, the former unable to keep another smile off his face.

"So are you two... engaged?" Abigail asked.

"Not yet," Mirana replied.

Issei would have sworn that he heard some longing in her voice, but his thoughts were filled with Gabriel laughing before he could turn the sound over in his head any more.

"Oh, don't worry, you two," the Seraph said. "If you ever decide you'd like to marry, then you have my blessings and approval." She winked at Issei. "Just remember the rules on falling. Any lovemaking has to be done without any feelings of possessiveness or lust."

Issei and Mirana both started to blush rather intensely at those words, and both found themselves looking at anything but each other as they tried to get their respective thoughts under control. Griselda, meanwhile, appeared the annoyed killjoy she was, while Xenovia and Asia were desperately trying not to bust up laughing. Irina, meanwhile, looked incredibly frustrated.

"I can't wait until my church back home hears about this!" Abigail said, chuckling. "My folks will love this."

"On that note," Issei said, wanting desperately to change the subject, "where are you from, Abigail?"

"Arkansas, the United States. Protestant church." Her expression became annoyed. "I was actually tapped to be Lord Raphael's Ten, but I was visiting family back home when the Brave Saint system started, and the lady who was supposed to be his Nine got picked for the spot instead."

"Oh come now," Gabriel said. "You're still annoyed over that? Surely you've been told that the numbers are meaningless beyond forming card combinations?"

" _Still_..." Abigail said. "It's the _principle_ , Lady Gabriel."

Issei blinked. "I... didn't actually know that. Huh. Any particular reason I'm a Jack then, Lady Gabriel?"

"It was the first card I touched in the box," the Seraph said frankly. "Any other card would do the same job. Some Seraphs choose to reincarnate Saints as specific values as a symbolic gesture. I never saw the point."

"What about the Royal Flush?" Xenovia asked. "Wouldn't that benefit from stronger people in those positions?"

"Royal Flush?" Issei asked.

Gabriel chuckled. "A Royal Flush is a card combination of an Ace, King, Queen, Jack and Ten of the same suit, Issei. Ergo, five Saints with the same suit with the aforementioned card values would unleash the effect. I've never experienced it myself, obviously. I've had no reason to use it – though with the people I have in those respective positions, I can certainly expect a wonderful result if and when I do. I'm told the power it unleashes is absolutely _immense_."

"Hey, maybe I wouldn't be winded after using my Balance Breaker. That'd be nice."

Before Gabriel could reply, Abigail interjected.

"You've unlocked your Balance Breaker?!" she squealed. "Oh, can I see it? Please? _Please?_ "

"Not at the dinner table, Abigail," Jessica said.

"Then after? Pretty please?" Abigail's eyes were pleading. "Just a minute or two?"

Issei looked at Mirana for a moment before he shrugged. "If Mirana's up for it."

"Oh, always," the Ace said. She was blushing again, her hands held in her lap. No doubt she was remembering how Issei looked in his sub-species Balance Breaker state.

"Having sinful thoughts, Mirana?" Jessica said dryly.

Mirana let out a slight squeak at that. A moment after, her hands were clasped together, prayers spoken incredibly quickly in a method of clearing her mind.

"Back on the original topic," Jessica continued, "I'll return the question you posed to Abigail, Issei. Where are _you_ from?"

"Oh, me?" Issei said. "Kuoh, a town in Japan. You, uh, probably haven't heard of it. Not very big."

Jessica and Abigail both nodded.

"So," Issei said, "I'll bounce the question at you, Jessica."

"Sweden."

"Before you ask, the three of us are from Italy," Griselda said, pointing at herself, Xenovia and Asia without even looking up.

"Russia," Mirana said.

"You know where _I'm_ from," Irina said, her voice still and calm.

"Of course," Issei said. "What about you, Dulio?"

Dulio mumbled something incomprehensible, his mouth still full of food. The Joker was on his third or fourth plate, while Issei had barely finished one.

"Oh, Issei!" Xenovia suddenly said.

"Yeah?"

"I meant to ask you about something Mirana told me."

"Which was?"

"How long have you been using Ascalon? And when did you find out you were a Holy Sword wielder?"

"Wait, what?" Jessica asked. "You're both a Longinus wielder and a natural-born Holy Sword user?"

"Err... about that," Issei said, "I'm... not. Not a natural-born wielder, that is. It'd be pretty cool if I was, but, nope."

"If you're not, then how are you able to use Ascalon?" Xenovia asked. "That sword's even more famous than my own Durandal for its pickiness."

"That would be _our_ doing," Gabriel interjected. "I asked Michael to research the sword using the blood of Father Ornstein specifically to let Issei use it in case he should clash with the White Dragon Emperor." She smiled. "It's fulfilled its purpose wonderfully, I think, certainly helped by that subspecies of yours."

"So you're saying that he has an artificially induced affinity to Ascalon?" Xenovia asked.

"Precisely. The light element inherent in the crystal's construction would allow him to use the Excalibur swords as well, though his compatibility for any Holy Sword that isn't Saint George's will be quite poor. It's simply a consequence of the fact that Ascalon is so different from most other Holy Swords."

"Eh, I've got Ascalon," Issei said nonchalantly. "I don't need another blade, I don't think. One question though – who's Father Ornstein, exactly? Never heard the name."

Asia and Xenovia each gave him a rather strange look. "Only one of the strongest exorcists of the last two centuries and the church's premier dragonslayer," the Ten of Hearts said. "He's a pastor now, but he was among the fifteen strongest exorcists in _history_."

"...okay," Issei said, chewing his lip. "I... uh... I see. No pressure there, then."

"If it makes you feel better, Xenovia is still vastly inferior to His Eminence Cardinal Strada," Griselda said.

"You don't need to rub it in," Xenovia complained.

"...who's that, exactly?"

"One of the most wonderful people in the church," Asia said, her eyes warm with a fond memory.

"The former wielder of Durandal," Jessica clarified. "He's almost immeasurably strong and possesses compatibility with Durandal rivaling or even exceeding Roland."

"Let me guess, Roland's the original wielder?" Issei asked.

"Yes."

"How many times have you used Ascalon, Issei?" Dulio asked, having finally stopped after five full plates.

"Once."

"Well then, I think it'd be prudent if you trained with our resident Durandal user."

Issei raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Getting the most out of a Holy Sword is an ongoing process, Issei," Gabriel said. "While you certainly were able to employ Ascalon to devastating effect against Vali Lucifer without training, your opponent had almost certainly never trained themselves to resist anti-dragon magics. As a result, the mere presence of the anti-dragon elements within the blade were sufficient, without your own strengthening of them. Some dragons are much more resistant than others, and beyond that, being able to channel greater amounts of Holy energy from a sword can have a multitude of uses, both for offense and defense. Simple enough?"

Issei nodded before looking at the Ten of Hearts. "You up for it, Xenovia?"

The blue-haired Angel nodded. "Tomorrow afternoon, the training field?"

"Sure."

* * *

Dinner went on for another half an hour after that, numerous bits of discussion being tossed back and forth. The other Saints who weren't Mirana or Irina had insisted on getting every detail about the battle between himself and Vali, and asked dozens of questions of them and Issei about the exact details of the conference prior to it. Even Dulio was fully engaged in the conversation, the young man clearly not feeling any sort of stomachache despite all he'd eaten. It made Issei wonder how he stayed thin.

Issei himself ended up chewing through three plates of food. When he'd complimented whoever had made it, he'd been surprised to find out it was Gabriel herself.

As they removed the plates, however, Abigail stood.

"Now then, Issei... you said you would show me _it?_ " Her expression was hopeful and excited.

"Yeah, I suppose I did. You still willing to help me, Mirana?"

"Indeed I am," the Ace of Hearts said, before looking at her King, who was helping to clear the table. "I assume we have permission, Lady Gabriel?"

"Of course," the Seraph said as she cleared the table alongside everyone else.

"Well then," Mirana said as she moseyed over to Issei, "let's do this, shall we?" She laid a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently as she and Issei released their card's potentials.

Once the temporary euphoria of the initial burst had passed, Issei summoned the gauntlet.

"Ddraig?"

 **"Welsh Dragon!** _ **Over Booster!**_ **"**

The room drowned itself in crimson light as Issei felt the familiar sting of an extra pair of wings tearing loose from his back.

For several seconds, Issei didn't open his eyes, awaiting the gasps around him to finish. Once they had, however, he took in the sight of Abigail promptly losing her mind in the middle of the Hearts building's Gathering Hall, giggling too hard to even talk.

"So, what do you think?" Issei asked, half-grinning as he did so.

"Impressive, Issei," Jessica said. "Most impressive."

"A nice design, if I do say so myself," Dulio complimented.

"It's wonderful, Issei!" Xenovia and Asia said simultaneously.

"Excellent," Griselda said.

"It's nice," Irina said, much less enthusiastically.

It was only then that Issei realized how quiet she'd been, both throughout dinner and in her last words.

"You okay, Irina?" Issei asked, turning to his childhood friend.

"Yeah," she said, her voice unemotional. Without warning, she vanished into a cross.

As he stared at the space where Irina had been, Issei had only one thought.

 _Was it something I said?_

* * *

Irina, in the building Michael's Saints called home, wandered through the halls with downcast eyes.

She'd had a crush on Issei since they were children, even if Issei was completely oblivious to it. She'd spent huge amounts of time thinking about what he was doing throughout her whole time in the church, even before she'd become an Angel. The chestnut-haired girl hadn't had words to express her excitement when she'd been sent to Kuoh on a mission, simply for the potential opportunity to see him all those years later.

Irina had, of course, been scolded by her boss, one Caesar Villiers, several times for this. "He probably doesn't even remember you at this point," he had said. "Your crush is on your memory of him, not he himself. It's a distraction that you must get out of your head." She'd known that the man who would become Uriel's Jack was probably right, but she'd never been able to stop.

Then she had met him again in the old church, and it had seemed all the pieces she could have ever hoped for were falling into place. She and Xenovia had both become Brave Saints after a fashion, just as she'd hoped they would, and Issei was exactly the person she had imagined he would be and more, even if he still wasn't particularly religious.

But then, the same day, she'd found that his heart was already being steadily won over by another.

She knew Mirana, of course. She was one of the church's most skilled exorcists and both Irina and Xenovia had received aid from her on two different occasions whilst working out in Russia. But never had she expected to be on the losing end for the person she'd longed to give her love to for so long.

It was so _unfair!_ Mirana hadn't met Issei but a few months earlier, and she had spent far less time with him in total than Irina had. She was gorgeous, yes, but so was Sister Griselda and even Xenovia, her own partner, and it was obvious Issei didn't hold any romantic affections towards them. And yet somehow, some way, the Ace of Hearts was winning Issei's affections. And even worse, she seemed to be returning them, if those bits of blushing were anything to go on.

Irina refused to let herself slip into despair or lust, but that still left plenty of room for unhappiness besides. Instead, she entered her own bedroom, locked the door, and sat quietly in the darkness.

* * *

 _And cut_.

 _Yes, I know, this chapter's mostly a bit of fluff. It's meant to be levity before the storm breaks – gotta let Issei have some good moments to make what's coming so much worse._


	60. The Holy Waves

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

 _ **whos abigail? was she already presented in the story before?**_

 _Yes. She was the librarian in chapter 47, the one who greeted Issei before he started training with Mirana._

* * *

Issei remained blissfully unaware of Irina's feelings and her inner turmoil as he helped clear the table that evening. Irina hadn't yet found the courage to tell him or anyone else, and she feared his reaction besides. It wasn't that Irina feared he would hate her for her feelings – not even close! - but she was as embarrassed as much as unhappy. The chestnut-haired girl knew he was under no obligation to return her feelings, nor did she believe she owned him or was "entitled" to him in any capacity. But at the same time, she desperately _wanted_ him in a sense she knew to be sinful.

The brunette, as mentioned, was privy to none of this. Instead, as he cleared off the table, he simply wished those who didn't call the building they were in home a good evening; the aforementioned Saints didn't stick around too much longer after dinner.

Gabriel, of course, dumped the dishes on them.

"I did _cook_ this meal, thank you," the Seraph said, a mischievous smile on her face. "So you all were served off of my effort."

"So you admit to making the mess and it's still our problem?" Issei asked dryly.

"Indeed. I am the Seraph, and I am in charge. Thus, your orders are to do the dinner dishes. Have a nice evening!"

With that, Gabriel vanished into a cross, giggling all the way.

* * *

"I hate that trump card of hers," Issei muttered after she'd departed.

"They're just dishes, Issei," Xenovia commented. "It's not that big of a deal. Though, unfortunately, I can't help you."

"Why not?"

"Because I have something I have to clear up at my church. Have a good evening!" She vanished an instant later.

Issei looked over towards Griselda. "I'm guessing that she had nothing she actually has to do."

"More than likely not. Worry not; I will chew her out later."

"Lord Raphael ordered me back to Fifth Heaven after dinner," Asia said, eyes downcast. "Apparently he wants my help with something..."

"That's fine, Asia," Mirana said. "The three of us can take care of the dishes."

Griselda sent a dry look at Issei as Asia vanished. "I do not care how worried your parents are, Issei. You are not leaving until all the dishes are done."

Issei looked at her grumpily, his own escape route having been neatly shut down without an ounce of effort.

* * *

Issei had been expecting a mess in the kitchen when he stepped through, but the reality was far worse. Dozens of pots and pans, numerous trays, tools and implements were scattered about rather carelessly, in the sinks and on the counter.

"She has no problem making a mess, does she?" Issei said.

"No," Mirana said, "Her meals are worth it, though. Lady Gabriel is a _wonderful_ cook, as I'm sure you found out."

"Wonder if that's common among the Seraphs?"

"I wouldn't be surprised. They've had time to practice."

"It is also irrelevant," Griselda said as she began drawing a sink-full of hot water. "All of them will be cleaned, no matter how many there are."

"We need a dishwasher."

"Why, when we have three perfectly good dishwashers right here?"

* * *

The process took close to two hours.

As it turned out, Issei's definition of "clean" and Griselda's definition of "clean" were two completely separate states. To Issei, "clean" meant anything that might be stuck to a dish was removed and the whole thing was rinsed under hot, soapy water. To Griselda, "clean" meant "swept of all sticky bits, rinsed, scrubbed a second time, rinsed again, sanitized twice and polished until you could see your face in it, even if the surface wasn't reflective to begin with, then scrubbed and rinsed one more time for good measure".

Within thirty minutes, Mirana, who was drying dishes, offered to switch places with Issei.

Even once all the dishes had been cleared, Griselda had still insisted that _everything_ else be scrubbed down to a point that made Issei wonder if she had some sort of cleaning fetish.

The grates on the stove were scrubbed off. The counters were disinfected and polished. The cabinets, refrigerator and freezer were all wiped down and carefully organized (Gabriel had messed the interior of the latter two somewhat in her preparation). The floor itself was swept twice, mopped and then polished.

By the end, Issei had done more cleaning in one room than he had ever bothered with in his own at home.

As she set the last salt shaker back into place, Griselda let out a satisfied hum. "There we are. All that time was quite worth it, was it not?"

Issei rolled his eyes. "It looks about like it did an hour ago, just shinier."

"That is simple laziness," Griselda said, but the scolding was tinged with amusement. "The extra shine improves the radiance of the kitchen, does it not?"

"You could get the same result by turning the lights up," Mirana pointed out.

Griselda simply huffed at the Ace's agreement with the Jack.

"Well," Issei said, "if there's nothing else, I ought to head home. My parents are probably wondering what's taking so long."

Griselda nodded without looking at him; she was still too busy inspecting the kitchen to ensure it was up to her own standards.

Mirana, however...

"Mind if I do one thing before that, Issei?"

"What?" Issei asked.

"This." With that, Mirana took a step closer and slid her arms around Issei.

"M-Mirana!" Issei squeaked as he felt her ample bust press against his chest, but he made no move to push her away; in fact, his own arms instinctively returned the gesture.

"Oh?" the Ace said, a knowing smile on her face. She shifted and squeezed him tighter. "Something the matter, Issei?"

"Err... I-I..." Issei stammered, certain that that unpleasant sensation he felt stabbing through his back was his wings flickering.

"Would you two like to be alone?"

The Ace and Jack's heads snapped to the side, taking in the sight of the Queen of Hearts looking them over with a rather aggravated expression.

"And if I _would_ like to be alone with little Issei here?" Mirana asked innocently. "What would you say then?"

"Is it your intention to make him the first Angel to fall by sheer lust, Mirana?"

"No. Not that I mind him lusting after me..." A dreamy, but still mischievous expression came over her face, leaving Issei _extremely_ confused.

"Evidently not," Griselda said. "If that were the case, you would not be doing what you are right now. Release him. _Now_."

"And if I don't want to?"

"Lady Gabriel will hear-"

"Lady Gabriel doesn't seem to care, and both the Nine and Ten would probably be too busy laughing to help you in separating us."

"Does Issei or does Issei not need to return home?"

"You're the one slowing us up."

"Release him, then. You have had your fun."

"Err... yeah, Mirana, I... I need to... to head back," Issei stammered.

A slightly disappointed look crossed her beautiful features, but Mirana did pull back.

"Have a good evening, Issei," the Ace said.

"Yeah... you too... both of you..." Issei's voice was incredibly awkward, as it always was whenever Griselda and Mirana started arguing. Without waiting for a further response, Issei vanished into a cross.

* * *

Issei didn't bother with his previous routine of appearing in the old school building and walking back. His parents knew where he was really going and what he was. What point was served by walking the extra three-quarters of a mile back? Instead, he simply appeared in his room. Tonight, at least, neither of his parents was there, and when he went downstairs, they weren't there, either. As he came back up the stairs, he heard them talking in their bedroom, though he couldn't make out about what. At the very least, their voices didn't sound hushed or frightened.

With nothing else to do, Issei turned the lights off and flopped down on his bed.

He didn't and couldn't fall asleep, of course. The nap in the afternoon had screwed up his sleeping schedule. Instead, his mind began to wander back towards a certain Angel who called Russia home.

Mirana was so sweet one minute, then teasing and mischievous the next – so much so that he honestly couldn't decide which was closer to the truth. They'd shared a kiss... no, two of them. They'd held hands, hugged and shared their own weaknesses. The brunette knew the Ace had a vulnerable side, but that didn't seem to be in effect tonight. But at the same time, she seemed to get just as much joy from teasing him mercilessly. Which was it, really?

His mind continued to wander, stepping back to three days earlier, when she'd shown that vulnerability to him. That, at least, didn't seem to be faked, unless it was all some sort of confusing setup by Gabriel and Mirana. He doubted that, to say the least.

That wasn't to say he doubted his own feelings. There was no question he had a crush on her. But for the life of him...

Issei shuddered as he remembered another woman he'd once liked, and how _that_ had ended.

Then, he gave a furious shake of his head. No way in _hell_ was Mirana anything like her. No matter how much a tease she might be, Mirana was kindhearted and she would _never_ do anything to hurt him...

...would she? If she knew?

* * *

Sleep did eventually come for Issei. Well past the time most were adrift in their dreams, his own nightly oblivion came. His rest was deep and dreamless, or so he would remember. If he dreamed, it and his memory of it had vanished by the time he awoke.

After clapping his alarm clock and shutting it off, Issei began to slowly go through his normal routines.

To his surprise, however, when he went downstairs, he was met by his parents, who seemed a good deal more upbeat than they had the previous two days.

"Morning, Issei!" his father called as he came down the stairs themselves.

"Morning," Issei said.

"So, how was your time in Heaven yesterday?" his mother asked.

For a moment, Issei was taken aback by the casualness of the inquiry, and his reply did not answer the question. "You don't have a problem with it?"

His mother shrugged. "I've thought about it, and even though I'm not sure I really like it, if Gabriel is really as kind as you say she is... well, I'll accept it. I can't exactly keep you here even if I wanted to, anyway!" She laughed. "You can hardly lock up someone who can teleport. And if your story is true, then what she's done for you is more than worth the risk. Just make sure we get to meet your grandchildren!"

Issei began to turn a _deep_ shade of red at that. "Lady Gabriel and I do _not_ have that kind of relationship! Yes, she's beautiful and intelligent _and_ incredibly powerful, but she and I are _not_ interested in each other like that!"

"You don't sound too resistant to the idea," his father said. A massive grin had crawled across his features as he said this.

"Most of the reincarnated male Angels wouldn't be," Issei muttered. "Or most of the Underworld, for that matter. I understand she's popular there."  
"So if you're that close to her, why not try and win her heart?" his father said, still smirking. "After all, Mister Harem King, you've got to start somewhere."

Issei spat his drink so hard that it came back up through his nostrils. "There's no way that Lady Gabriel would actually be interested in me, and even if she was, polygamy is forbidden in Heaven. And Heaven is where I'd like to stay, thanks! No harems for me... _disappointing as that is..._ " His last words were muttered.

His father busted up laughing for a few moments. "I don't think you've changed as much as you pretend you have, Issei."

"Old habits die hard," Issei said, but there was a small grin on his face.

"Are there any women you _are_ interested in up there?" his mother asked, the same mischievous smirk on her face that her husband wore.

"Oh, maybe one or two."

"Come one, spill the beans."

"No, and that's final."

"Smart boy," his mother said, before she broke down in a small fit of giggles. "Oh, how I'd like to tell Gabriel her own Saint might be interested in her."

"One reason to make sure you _never_ meet her face-to-face."

The discussion went on for another twenty minutes, the entire family laughing and joking and teasing each other. Issei felt quiet relief go through him throughout the entire meal, as he saw his parent's old selves reestablished.

When they found out that he was the only male of Gabriel's deck, of course...

"You say you're not making your own harem and yet you've got five women around you," his father said. "I'm finding this "I'm not a lech anymore" story harder to believe by the second, Issei!"

"Griselda's practically a drill instructor, Mirana's shy as all heck, Asia's _way_ too young for that and Xenovia is a swordswoman who thinks mostly about her next fight. Lady Gabriel's off the table and I already explained why." It wasn't _entirely_ untruthful, at least.

"Is that what you tell yourself for the sake of keeping up appearances?" his mother asked knowingly.

"Is lechery genetic or a learned behavior?" Issei retorted.

"I'm leaning towards a bit of both," his father said, causing the entire table to bust up laughing once again.

The conversation, in fact, was so pleasant that Issei was nearly late for school.

* * *

The school day, by contrast, was eminently boring, with nothing left between him and the break except days that were practically filler. The day passed by slowly, with the Jack of Hearts constantly checking the clock and hoping it would start to pass faster than five minutes at a time.

The only highlight came just after lunch, when Matsuda and Motohoma came running up to him.

"Hey, Issei!" Matsuda said, speaking to him as though they weren't borderline enemies at this point. "The girl's PE class is finishing up..." A lecherous expression came across his face, no doubt imagining hiding in one of the lockers and spying on the undressing ladies.

Issei's expression went stony, and his next words were a good deal louder than they needed to be, solely for the sake of making sure the girls passing around them could hear him clearly. "I know where you're going with this and I'm not interested. If you two want to get the crap beaten out of you, go ahead."

The aforementioned girls seemed to exhale slowly, as if sighing in relief.

Matsuda and Motohoma, as expected, decided that anger would succeed where it had failed many times before.

"C'mon, Issei! You're supposed to be with the two of us! We're a trio! Friends!"

"Since when do friends spread rumors about each other and try to beat the crap out of someone just because they decide they'd rather be able to hold a conversation with a lady of this school rather than have a view up their skirt? If you're still wondering why you two don't have girlfriends, you might start looking there."

It was quite true these days; for a fortnight after he had returned to school, the girls had remained suspicious of him. As the days had worn on and it had become clear that Issei's change in attitude and refusal to associate with the Perverted Duo was both genuine and likely permanent, they'd become increasingly neutral with him, treating him less and less like a lecher and more and more like... well, their fellow student. No longer did the women of the school duck into hallways or shoot him dirty looks every time he walked down a hall; instead, there was an occasional friendly greeting, which was more than enough for him.

"Oh, like you've got one!"

"No, I don't," Issei replied. "The difference, of course, is that I _might_ get one at some point in the future. You two will probably be lonely virgins until the day you die."

Several of the girls around began struggling not to laugh, and a few didn't bother to hide it at all.

"I oughta find that priest who screwed you up and knock his teeth out!"

Issei pictured the friends now known as the "Perverted Duo" rather than the "Perverted Trio" trying to fight Dulio... or for that matter, _any_ of Heaven's Saints, and he busted up laughing.

"What's so funny, huh?!"

"That priest was a trained fighter, among other things. He'd knock you into next week if you tried it."

Issei knew that this was probably a complete lie. If what Griselda said was true, Dulio was fast enough that he would probably be across the room before the first punch was finished swinging.

Matsuda suddenly tried to grab at the cross hanging around Issei's neck and yank him forward, but Issei evaded this maneuver easily. "Oh, and friends don't do what _you_ just did, either."

Motohoma swung his fist at Issei for that comment. As all times before, Issei easily caught the fist and threw it back. Matsuda's subsequent kick was countered with Issei's own foot.

"When are you going to get it through your heads that my fighting skills are way better than yorus? You two seriously need to train."

"Maybe we will!"

"And maybe I'll actually go slide a peek up one of these girl's skirts. And maybe water will start flowing uphill tomorrow, since we're listing out things that'll never happen. Have a good summer!"

With that, Issei turned and walked out, to the applause of at least one of the girls who had been watching.

* * *

Heaven's gates were a welcome sight after a long and tedious day. After passing through the gates, Issei took flight and blasted across First Heaven, straight towards the building Gabriel's Saints called home. He was in and out after less than two minutes, having just enough time to say hello to Griselda before he left. In its scabbard at his side, Ascalon hung. Even as he flew, Issei itched to pull it out of the scabbard, simply to feel the immensely powerful Holy Sword in his hand.

He shook the feeling off, however, and landed at the training building.

* * *

Xenovia was waiting for him on the training field. The stone floor and stands had all been repaired from the previous day, when the simple shock wave of Issei's fist meeting Gabriel's had broken the ground and the seats around them. The blue-haired Angel was already practicing with the broadsword known as Durandal, its massive blade slicing apart the self-rebuilding training dummies without issue.

"Xenovia!" Issei called as he finally indulged his itch and drew Ascalon.

"Afternoon, Issei!" Xenovia said as she yanked her sword from the stone tiling that it had broken. "You ready?"

"Born ready," Issei said, grinning as he did so.

"Then here I come!"

With a surprising turn of speed, Xenovia came towards him with a straightforward charge, the gold-trimmed blue sword held behind her with one hand. Issei ducked sideways and barely avoided losing his hair when he realized he'd underestimated the Ten's flexibility.

"Not bad!" Xenovia said as she effortlessly tore the Durandal from the stone once more and blocked Issei's sword swing.

"What are we doing this for?" Issei asked with a grin. "Thought you were going to show me how to pull more potential out of a sword!" As he said this, he dodged two more swings.

"Just want to see how you do in a sword duel!" Xenovia said as she swung the blade down with both hands. Issei had more than enough time to dodge back several feet... before an immense, beautifully bright wave of energy left the blade's edge. Issei had barely enough time to slide sideways, the light just barely avoiding touching him. As the wave passed him, he felt tears ripping in his clothes.

When it crashed into the wall below the Seraph's seating, Issei was genuinely shocked by the incredibly loud blast that shot through his eyes and ears.

When the dust had cleared and Issei's ears had stopped ringing, his jaw dropped at what he saw.

The wall was ripped apart, the stone bricks torn through like tissue paper by the holy wave of the Durandal. The wave had only stopped several feet through the rock, and through the gap Issei could see the stairs that no doubt lead to the seats above.

Issei turned back to Xenovia, jaw agape. She grinned in reply. "Impressed?"

"...mind if I see that thing?"

Xenovia shrugged and turned the blade horizontally, holding it out to him. "May I see Ascalon?"

Issei nodded, and as he took the offered sword, he passed his own to Xenovia.

As soon as his blade clasped around the handle, Issei managed to get a clear idea of one thing: Durandal was _heavy_. Thanks to the immense amounts of strength training he'd undergone courtesy of Griselda, he wasn't unable to hold it with one hand, but when he tried to swing the sword, the arc was wobbly and rough, in sharp contrast to his own wielding Ascalon.

 _Xenovia's stronger than I thought she was...a_ _ **lot**_ _stronger..._

He remembered how Xenovia's swing had looked, how perfect and razor-straight it had been. It was rather admirable.

When the Jack brought the sword back down, he became more aware of the blade itself, and he felt his arm twitching slightly. He could feel the blade itself, almost as though it was a living thing. It didn't seem particularly happy with who was holding it.

Well, that wasn't quite right. It didn't seem as though the blade itself had completely refused him, but more that it was reluctant. Yes, that was the right word – _reluctant_. It would respond to him somewhat and would certainly be a somewhat capable weapon in his hands, but it didn't like him much. It would cooperate, but it would never allow him access to all its potential.

"Ah!"

Issei's eyes snapped up as a ringing went through his ears.

Xenovia was looking at her hand; Ascalon had fallen from it and she'd made no attempt to catch it. The blade, of course, was completely unharmed, despite having stuck itself upright in the ground upon impact.

"What's wrong?" Issei asked worriedly.

Xenovia chuckled. "I've heard of Ascalon's pickiness, but I'd never heard what it does to people it doesn't like." She held her hand up.

Issei's eyes widened as he took in the sight of the blood that ran down Xenovia's hand. The flesh it flowed from had been torn _exactly_ along the line she would have held Ascalon's grip.

"...think you'd better get some bandages."

Xenovia nodded. "Would you mind keeping hold of Durandal while I'm gone? I don't want it cutting through the floor or anything."

"Yeah, sure," Issei said.

He'd expected Xenovia would walk out, but instead, she vanished into a cross.

* * *

Xenovia hadn't been gone but a minute before Issei couldn't resist, and pulled Ascalon from the broken stone floor with his left hand. Unlike Xenovia, Ascalon responded effortlessly to Issei, accepting him as a worthy wielder. Issei did rather wish he _was_ a natural-born wielder, if only for the options it might open up.

In his dominant right hand, he held the untamable Durandal, while in the other, the sword of Saint George, Ascalon. Experimentally, he tried swinging them both.

As before, Issei easily kept control of Ascalon, while Durandal wobbled wildly in midair. Swinging straight down produced a similar result.

For the next ten minutes, Issei tried slashing with the two blades in every way he could think of, trying to see if there was any way he could keep good control of Durandal with one hand. Nothing, however, worked. Eventually, he found himself gasping as he wore himself near to the bone.

"Having fun?"

Issei looked up to find Xenovia standing a few feet back, leaning against one of the training dummies with a smile on her face. A pair of white bandages had been laid across her palm, while Xenovia herself didn't show any hint of pain.

"Eh, kind of," Issei said. "I just wanted to see what it'd be like to use them both at the same time. Sorry."

"No trouble," Xenovia said. "You don't seem too bad at it, actually. Perhaps with more strength training I could teach you some basics of dual wielding?"

"Sounds interesting," Issei said. "Later, though."

Xenovia nodded and extended her arm. "May I have my blade back?" she asked with a grin.

Once it had been returned to her and Issei had passed Ascalon back to his dominant right hand, Xenovia nodded. "To draw more potential out of a sword, you literally have to channel your own Holy element into it. It's an element possessed by both Angels and Holy Sword wielders, artificial or natural. It works for light weapons or Holy Swords. Like this..."

In her hand, Durandal began to glow before stopping a moment later. "See?"

Issei nodded, before focusing on his own aura. Trying to direct it around himself and into his blade, he was mildly elated simply to see it begin to glow the same way. The glow was weak, hardly a light at all, but it was something.

"Not a bad first attempt, Issei," Xenovia said. "It's a simple matter of practice, that's all. It took me hundreds of attempts to be able to do it effectively, don't worry."

"Good to know that I'm not behind the curve for once," Issei said. "Wonder if the Boosted Gear could help?"

Xenovia shrugged and pointed to his arm. "You're the one with the Sacred Gear, Issei. If you'd like to try it, be my guest."

Issei nodded. "Boosted Gear."

In an instant, the Red Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet had appeared across his arm.

 **"BOOST!"**

As the boosts counted up, Issei continued practicing with the Holy element, very slowly getting a feel for how to channel the Holy element itself.

"That should be enough," Issei said after six Boosts. "Let's see here..." As he channeled the element into the sword once more, he touched Ascalon's blade.

 **"TRANSFER!"**

As soon as that word was called...

"Whoa!"

The blade in Issei's hand wasn't so much _glowing_ as it was _blazing_ , the shimmer around the sword's blade bright enough to reach the edges of the arena.

"Well, I guess that's a yes," Issei said.

"Issei!" Xenovia said. "Release the aura now! Try to throw it in a wave!"

Issei nodded, before swinging the sword in a horizontal arc, willing the energy away from himself.

As the sword passed in its arc, the glow did indeed leave the sword, the aura itself plowing forwards. It was a beautiful light to witness as it flew across the room, towards the opposite wall of the stands.

When it hit, there was another incredibly loud blast, and while not as much dust was kicked up, it still took a moment for the two Angels to be able to see what the result had been.

A massive chunk had been cut out of the wall, the gash in the solid stone stand a good six inches deep.

Xenovia looked to Issei and smiled. "Yes, more like that, I think."

"Didn't go as far," Issei said as he looked the crack over. "As the Durandal's, I mean."

"Durandal's a sword built to destroy just about anything," Xenovia explained. "Ascalon is a Holy Sword, yes, but its main use is in killing Dragons." She turned and looked at the crack. "I'd guess a wave like that would've sliced a low-class dragon in half instantly and probably caused major injury to a middle-class one."

"What about higher-level ones?"

"To be honest, they'd probably have shrugged it off." Xenovia smirked. "What, looking to go dragon hunting?"

Issei laughed. "Nah. Just wanted to know. Room for improvement, I guess." He looked at Ascalon. "I wonder if this sword would've been able to hurt Ddraig at full strength?"

 **"No."**

Issei and Xenovia's eyes looked down at the gauntlet. "What do you mean, "No"? Were you immune to it?"

 **"After Albion and I met, we each trained ourselves relentlessly, Issei. In the course of that, I became capable of defending against anti-dragon spells and weapons. In fact, an Angel once tried to attack me with the sword in your hand. I just sort of stared at him after his blade bounced off. Sadly, that's not been passed onto you."**

"You torch that Angel after that?"

 **"I didn't bother hurting him. The poor fool was no threat to me and he wasn't getting between me and Albion. Killing him would've won me nothing."**

Issei and Xenovia nodded. "So... that's all? Channel the element?"

"That's to create the waves and to strengthen it," Xenovia said. "Sadly, pulling the maximum potential out of a sword also depends somewhat on your compatibility, and there's only so much you can do about that."

Issei nodded, biting his lip. "Well, I suppose all that's left is to keep practicing?"

"Pretty much," Xenovia said.

"Well, I can do that anytime," Issei said. His face formed into a grin as he raised his sword. "Shall we?"

Xenovia grinned.

* * *

For the next hour, the Jack and Ten sparred with their Holy swords. That both were lethally sharp and could've easily slain the opponent was irrelevant to them; their blades never came close enough to harming each other for it to matter.

As Issei battled her, he found himself analyzing Xenovia's style of swordsmanship. It was quite similar to Nero's, in fact. There was more finesse behind the strikes (though that wasn't hard to do when one considered Nero's "power-first, all other concerns secondary" approach), but there was still a clear emphasis on power over skilled movement.

Of course, this complimented her own blade well enough that it didn't matter.

Unbeknownst to him, Xenovia was doing the same to him. Her assessment was that he was her exact opposite, focusing on precise, fast swings and excellent footwork as compared to her more brute-force style. The only shared thought between their respective thoughts was that Issei's Ascalon complimented him as well as Durandal complimented Xenovia.

It was after nearly an hour of this that Xenovia became aware of a buzzing in her pocket. She raised her sword in a show of surrender.

"Time out," the Ten said. "I think I have a phone call."

Issei pulled back, nodding as he brought his sword to his side. "Go ahead."

Switching her sword to her left hand, she pulled the phone out of her pocket and checked the caller. As she'd hoped would not be the case, it was from the church she worked with. She flipped it open and put it to her.

"Hello? Yes, this is Xenovia Quarta... oh, dear... yes, I can... I should be there in about a half hour... yes, thank you. I'll see you then."

She closed the phone, put it back in her pocket and looked at her fellow Saint. "Sorry, Issei. That was my boss at the facility I work in. Sister Lanza needs me to take confessions this afternoon; apparently the person who was going to do it fell ill."

Issei nodded. "I get it, don't worry. See you tomorrow?"

"If you wish," she said, smiling. The portal he'd first seen during the battle with Kokabiel formed near her hand. Into it she slid Durandal, the broadsword vanishing from sight as it entered the storage dimension.

"Hey, think you could teach _me_ to do that sometime?" Issei asked as she finished putting it away.

"Oh, certainly! I could've taught you this afternoon if you'd told me..."

"Sorry, I just wasn't thinking about it," Issei said. "Well, you've got somewhere you've gotta be..."

Xenovia nodded, and without further words, vanished into a cross.

* * *

Issei remained in the training field after Xenovia left. He continued practicing his channeling of Holy elements, but he also spent some time talking to Ddraig.

"I'm curious, Ddraig, could that wave hurt me?" he asked as he watched another one blast apart a wall (Xenovia had assured him that damaging this room was completely acceptable and would be fixed via magic within minutes of him leaving). "You said I was weak to anti-dragon elements, after all."

 **"Oh, it would kill you near-instantly if it touched you."**

"Comforting. Was Xenovia right when she said it could kill low-class dragons?"

 **"Yes, though I wouldn't expect that to do more than annoy a dragon higher than middle-class. Swing it at a Dragon King and they'll laugh in your face as they tear you to ribbons."**

"Dragon King?"

 **"I** _ **did**_ **say I'd explain this to you, didn't I? The Dragon Kings are six extremely powerful legendary dragons, mentioned in human myths. They're above high-class dragons and are on par with Satan-class Devils and some of the lower Seraphim."**

"Who are they?"

 **"Well, the weakest is Vritra, the "Prison Dragon"... he's sealed up now. Sealed inside a bunch of Sacred Gears I don't care enough to know. He fought Indra, one of the strongest deities of the Hindu mythology and one of the strongest beings in the world. It wasn't going to end any other way."**

"And the others?"

 **"There's Fafnir, the "Gigantis Dragon", the dragon Siegfried killed with Gram."**

"Gram?"

 **"Once I'm done. As I was saying, there's Tannin, the "Blaze Meteor Dragon". Then there's Yu-Long, the "Mischievous Dragon", Midgardsormr, the "Sleeping Dragon", and..."**

Issei swore he felt Ddraig shiver.

 **"...Tiamat, the "Chaos Karma Dragon". She hates me."**

"Why?"

 **"I borrowed her treasure before a battle with Albion, and... it broke. And Tiamat does not forget or forgive."**

"Okay..." Issei said, unsure of how to react to this revelation except to change the subject. "So, uh... what's "Gram"? A weapon of some kind?"

 **"It's a Demon Sword. The strongest one of the lot, actually. The so-called "Sword of the Sun". Siegfried of legend used it to kill Fafnir, like I said. The Norse resurrected the dragon later for reasons I can't begin to understand..."**

"A Demon Sword? That what it sounds like?"

 **"Indeed, a sword infused with Demonic Power. They're the ultimate weapons against Angels or Fallen Angels... and Gram has anti-dragon elements in the mix, too."**

"So Vali using it on me would be like me using Ascalon on him?"

Ddraig let out a humorless laugh. **"No, Issei, worse. Much,** _ **much**_ **worse. Ascalon is a powerful Holy Sword, no question about that, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Gram. Gram is on par with Caliburn, the strongest of all Holy Swords."**

Issei gulped.

 **"I see you're getting the threat it poses. If you ever run into a wielder of Gram, Issei... watch out."**

"I hear you... thanks, Ddraig."

 **"Any time, partner."**

* * *

It was as Issei dismissed the Boosted Gear that he became aware of another presence. Before, the Red Dragon Emperor's deep baritone had drowned out the footsteps behind him. He turned.

Standing there, in the middle of the training field, was Raziel's Nine.

"Afternoon, Issei."

"Afternoon."

Issei's voice wasn't exceptionally friendly. This wasn't surprising, given the thought that was going through his mind at the time.

 _This person's already lied to me once..._

A closer examination revealed another oddity, this one in his left hand.

 _Why does this guy have Excalibur Destruction...?_

The brunette had realized before Lucas even responded to his greeting that something wasn't right. There was no logical reason that Raziel's Nine should have that weapon, and Issei knew it. He didn't know how many wings Raziel's Nine had, but evidently it was enough that he could effectively walk into the Vatican, ask for a sword and get it without question.

"I heard through the grapevine that Xenovia was going to teach you how to use your sword more effectively..." He gestured around the room at the dozens of blasts and the cracked stones. "...and it looks like you're succeeding. I just wanted to see how you were doing, maybe give you a pointer or two while you're here."

Issei recalled Xenovia's words earlier, about how channeling would work as well with a sword formed from light as a Holy Sword, and his unease grew.

"Well, it's not all mine, you know. She got a few blasts in here and there."

"Wouldn't expect anything less from her. You know she was once called the "Violence Permitted by God"?"

"No, I didn't. She's into destruction, that's for sure."

"Weird to here, coming from the Dragon Saint. I mean, the Boosted Gear is all _about_ destruction, isn't it?"

Issei shrugged. "It's a Longinus. It's _about_ whatever it is you want it to be. I like to think of myself as being more of a technique-type, thanks."

Lucas shrugged back. "I suppose. I'll admit I'm no expert on the Longinus myself. I suppose using fire makes sense for you."

"Lord Michael's an excellent teacher," Issei said.

"He taught you personally?"

"As much so he could play jokes on me and get a laugh at my expense as anything else. I _did_ end up teaching myself how to combine light and fire elements, though."

Issei noticed Lucas tense almost imperceptibly, and his unease escalated into near-panic. But neither one showed any hint of this.

"Yeah, the library's got a pretty good book-"

Lucas froze, realizing an instant too late that he'd said too much. Issei, meanwhile, gave him a cold stare as he summoned the Boosted Gear.

" **BOOST!"**

"That explains why you lied to me. Why would the nonreligious Saint ever suspect poor, n-nervous Lucas Truman, a new Angel?"

 **"BOOST!"**

"Hyoudou, I don't get what this is about..." Lucas said. It was a poor attempt to defend himself, and both knew it; Issei could see the fear in Lucas's eyes at the realization he'd been figured out.

"There's only been one book in the library on combining fire and light, and it wasn't supposed to be there."

Without another word, Lucas charged.

As the Destruction swung down, Issei danced backwards, avoiding the immense blast by fractions of an inch.

 **"BOOST!"**

"So you're the one who intercepted it," Lucas hissed as he came forwards again. The sword dropped again, but Issei was once more out of range of the subsequent blast and crater it formed. "Of course it'd be you."

"And I know all about your little plan," Issei snapped. "As do the Seraphs. Your plan was finished before it started."

 **"BOOST!"**

Despite the confidence in his words, Issei was scared. _Incredibly_ scared. Lucas was a far-better trained swordsman holding a sword made to destroy things, and at least twice as fast as Xenovia. At that moment, Issei was cursing himself for not being able to use Balance Breaker on his own. Every blow he dodged, he was closer to the blast that ensued. He'd been able to get close enough once or twice to strike, but both times Lucas had easily avoided him.

Issei found himself remembering the fight with Nero as he dodged more attacks.

 _This one's for real, though...!_

 **"BOOST!"**

If he slipped up just once, he was dead or seriously injured. And he couldn't teleport out; he could only presume that Lucas or someone working with him had shut off that option. He didn't even dare make a run for the door; if it was blocked, he would be trapped with nowhere to go and Lucas would have an easy time picking him off.

Another blast left another massive crater, this one closer than ever before. His own foot was but two inches from the edge and the energy left his ears ringing.

 **"BOOST!"**

"Want some more?" Lucas hissed. "Call this instruction."

To his horror, Issei could see a massive amount of holy energy gathering around the Excalibur Destruction, much more than Issei had ever been able to manage. With a single swing, the aura was released in a single wave of energy. Issei barely managed to fly over it before it impacted the Seraph's stand.

When the aura hit the stones, Issei was left momentarily blinded by the wave and deafened by the blast that hit his ears. The sheer strength of the impact left his bones rattling.

After a few moments, however, Issei felt agony sweep through him.

He'd been very close to the Seraph's stands when Lucas had released the wave, and a few of the chunks of rock flying off of it from the impact had speared through the brunette in midair.

Looking down, nearly blind from pain, he saw a chunk of his chest missing, while his left arm and shoulder were shredded. Through the torn flesh, Issei could even see bone poking through. His leg was similarly crippled.

It was Kokabiel's attack all over again. Issei couldn't think. His entire thought process was directed towards the horrific pain tearing through him from every angle.

 **"BOOST!"**

His vision was hazy, but he could see Lucas flying up from below him, no doubt to finish the job. Issei could see the smirk on Lucas' face.

That, more than anything, made Issei do what he did next.

He charged.

* * *

Lucas had thought he'd won, with Gabriel's Jack crippled as he so obviously was. He took to the wing rather lazily, flying up to meet him and send him crashing back to the ground. Raziel's Nine had no doubt that he would be a Fallen Angel as soon as he fled Heaven to escape, and he didn't care. Valkost had promised to reinstate anyone who fell to further their plans into Heaven, and Valkost wasn't known as a liar.

He was but a few feet from Issei, ready to grab him, when he realized he'd made a mistake.

That realization was prompted by Gabriel's Jack dive-bombing him.

Issei Hyoudou slammed into his chest at a speed too quick for him to even raise his sword, and his one good arm held Lucas' sword hand back in a display of strength Lucas would've thought impossible.

 **"BOOST!"**

Despite the additional weight, Lucas held on in midair, slowly losing height rather than falling straight back to the stones now thirty-odd feet below.

"What are you going to do, bleed on me?" Lucas taunted as he began punching at the side of Issei's skull, trying to get him to free his hand. Issei did not even respond to being hit in the head as he answered.

It was Lucas' turn to be horrified as he saw the Jack's arm catch fire, and his own clothing a moment later.

" _Don't you dare_ -"

 **"TRANSFER!"**

The fire roared up, and both Angels crashed back to earth.

* * *

For a moment, Issei could only stare at the result of the crash and his fire. Issei himself remained unharmed by the flames, due to both his own training with them and the fact that they were his to begin with.

Lucas Truman was still alive, but just barely. His entire upper body was scorched beyond recognition, and his left arm was missing completely. Raziel's no-doubt-now-former Nine was unconscious, barely breathing through the broken bones and likely damaged organs in his chest.

Issei felt no sympathy for this suffering and bloodshed. None at all.

Instead, after a moment, he began to fight against agony and forced himself to crawl, despite the blood flowing from his wounds.

One inch became a foot. A foot a yard. One yard became two.

Several minutes later, he reached the exit door of the training field, and struggled to pull himself up far enough to push it open.

He was spared the effort when the door opened on its own.

Standing behind it was an Angel he recognized, their face twisted in horror.

"A little help..." Issei wheezed. "...G-Griselda?"

With the cry of his own name ringing in his ears, Issei Hyoudou fell unconscious.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _There, there's your nice, long update. Now stop bugging me for three days!_

 _*You may bug me again starting on January 27_ _th_ _, 2018.*_


	61. Piecing Things Together

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Issei was getting rather tired of the routine where he would fall unconscious in a near-death state only to wake up in a bed somewhere. It had happened three times now – once after his disastrous date, once after the fight with Kokabiel and now after the debacle with Lucas.

This particular bed was even more annoying thanks to the bright fluorescent light above it.

Issei let out a groan as pushed himself upwards, pain shooting through his chest. Neon sparks flew behind his eyes as he sat up. His throat was dry as a desert, and his tongue had dried to leather. One hand reached up and rubbed the unconsciousness from his eyes, dried flakes of rheum falling out as he did so. Once he had, he took a clearer look at his surroundings.

 _Fifth Heaven?_

It was obviously a medical facility, at least, judging by the equipment around him and the fact that he was dressed in a hospital gown, sterile and simple. There was no sign of the school uniform he'd been wearing.

The only oddity was something that was on the table near the bed. It was a clear, circular tray about the length of his arm, and in it, there were dozens of stones. The stones varied in size and shape; some were barely pebbles while others were thicker around than his index finger and an inch long.

Issei didn't know what to make of the sight.

He rubbed at his eyes again before looking around a second time and spotting a cross on the wall.

 _Fifth Heaven._

That at least explained how he was still alive. Apparently the medical facilities had saved him a second time.

 _Raphael's probably getting sick of dealing with me..._

Issei grinned to himself, though there wasn't much amusement in the thought past one instant.

Slowly, tenderly, Issei's eyes slid down his previously-shredded left arm.

He couldn't say he was particularly surprised at the numerous tiny scars that ran along his flesh; they weren't particularly deep and could easily be covered by a long sleeve, but there were certainly a hell of a lot them. His right leg, meanwhile, had two much larger scars cutting diagonally down it.

That just left the matter of his chest. Gingerly, Issei pulled up the hospital gown to see just what damage had been done by the explosion.

His chest looked like some enormous creature with crude, horribly misshapen claws had run its paw over it in a zigzag. There was no coordination of the scars at all to form the sorts of interesting patterns one often saw in movies; instead, it was a series of wavy lines that were rather unpleasant to the eye, as though the jellyfish with the world's thickest tentacles had been slapped across his chest.

Issei wanted to stand, to get back on his feet and get some actual food into himself; he was absolutely ravenous after being unconscious for who-knew-how-long. He did not dare, however, for fear of angering someone in Fifth Heaven's bureaucracy, or worse, someone in his deck. All that was left to do was to twiddle his thumbs and wait for someone to come by.

* * *

Luckily for the sake of his sanity, Issei wasn't kept waiting for more than fifteen minutes or so.

He'd been just about ready to start talking with Ddraig and ask questions when he heard the handle to the room turn. After a fraction of a moment, the door pushed open, and a head of mahagony hair poked through in a way that distinctly recalled Dulio's first appearance.

"Oh, you're finally up."

The door pushed open further, and through it stepped a woman. She was dressed conservatively, her clothes disguising everything feminine about her save her hair. It was quite lengthy, easily longer than Griselda or Mirana's, and perfectly straight, as though she spent time going over it with a fine-toothed comb. Down the right side of her face was a lengthy white scar that Issei was much too polite to bring up.

"Issei Hyoudou, right?" Before Issei could even reply, the woman continued speaking. "Elizabeth Lanza, Lord Raphael's Queen. Now then, I assume you'd like to get out of here?"

"That'd be nice, yeah."

Why did her name sound familiar to him?

"Well, if you think you're well enough. From what Griselda's said and what we know about you, trying to keep you in Fifth Heaven would be a way to drive you and everyone else insane. Though if you start feeling ill, we need to know right away. Even with Lord Raphael's magic, you came off the operating table only sixteen hours ago."

"Operating table?" Issei asked, mildly stunned.

Elizabeth nodded, eyebrow raised. "You were sent in for surgery, Issei. If you're wondering..." The mahogany-haired woman stepped over and tapped the circular tray full of stones. "These are all the pieces of rubble they had to pick out of your flesh. Some sort of macabre souvenir, I guess. It wouldn't do to close you up with large hunks of rock stuck inside you. From what I understand, they actually had to make some additional cuts just to get a couple of them out with minimal damage. Fixing your wounds was the easy part." She gave a humorless snort. "Not that having fifty pieces of stone in your body stopped you. You left a blood trail all the way back to Lucas. Crawled all the way, near as we can tell."

"How did I...?" Issei said, struggling to remember the exact details of what had happened. His memory was fine up until the Holy wave from the Excalibur Destruction, but then it grew incredibly hazy. For some reason, he remembered heat and screaming, and maybe some crawling, but little else. He thought back further, if for some clue...

Then it clicked into place where he'd heard the name "Lanza" before.

"You were the one who called Xenovia away, weren't you?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "I did nothing of the sort. I am Xenovia's boss, yes, but I didn't need her that day. Someone else called that in, and I'm not sure who. Someone in league with Lucas, no doubt, aiming to get you two alone so he could kill you." She shrugged. "Not that that's actually what's on the record. That's just my own personal extrapolation based on what I've heard about you from secondhand sources – mostly that you're not the sort of person who starts a fight. Officially..." She let out a low whistle. "Officially, neither you nor Lucas is in the clear as of yet. You'll more than likely be sent straight to Lord Raguel, head of investigations. Lucas woke up three hours ago and has already given his version of events. No doubt he's denied everything and pinned the blame on you."

"Crap..."

Elizabeth shrugged. "Don't worry, Issei. The other Saints you've met are being questioned as well. From the ones I've talked to, they've all said the same thing, that you wouldn't attack another Saint except to defend yourself. Even Nero Raimondi said that, from what he tells me."

Issei chuckled mirthlessly. "Well, I suppose there's no point in delaying it. Might as well go face the music and get it over with."

"A positive attitude always helps when facing an encroaching horror," Elizabeth said with a pleasant smile.

"What horror's that?"

"Mainly Lord Raguel."

At that, Elizabeth turned and walked towards the door. When she reached it, she turned back to look at him. "Are you coming along?"

"Uh... yeah, yeah," Issei said, pulling the blankets off of himself and slowly, tenderly standing.

Stabbing pain shot through his previously-injured leg for a few seconds. Then, it began to tighten and cramp up. Issei let out a slight grunt at this, and his walking pace was slow. Elizabeth grinned as she saw him approach her.

"I think it'd be best if we get some water into you, too."

Issei nodded but did not respond with words.

* * *

The hospital, as it turned out, served an excellent meal. Seated at a table in the reception area, Issei was allowed to plow through two plates of food and several glasses of water.

Once he'd finished with his feed, Issei felt refreshed. Still nervous, yes, but refreshed. He wasn't quite "well" yet, but he was in a far better state of mind now that his stomach wasn't a gnawing pit and his throat wasn't sandpaper.

About halfway through the meal, Elizabeth had left to "go grab something", and she returned just as he finished with that "something".

On a coat hanger and wrapped in plastic, freshly cleaned, were the formal priest-like clothes that Issei had worn at the conference.

"These were just ready to be picked up, from what I was told?" Elizabeth said. "Something about them being soaked in blood?"

"Vali Lucifer, the betrayer's," Issei said, nodding. "Ascalon drew it at the Peace Conference."

Elizabeth nodded back as she handed the clothes to the brunette. "Well then, I've cleared this with Lord Raphael – you can return to the Hearts building, wash up and get changed. You're to come back here the moment you're finished with that. Meet me in the reception area and I'll escort you to Lord Raguel's headquarters so he can question you. You have one hour. Oh, and bring the gown back."

Issei nodded. "Can I teleport?"

"Of course. Like I said, though, only straight to First Heaven and back. If the rest of your deck tries to stop you to talk, just tell them what I told you. If you leave Heaven in the next hour, you will fall. Am I understood?"

Another nod. "Thanks, Elizabeth."

He vanished into a cross.

* * *

The Jack of Hearts didn't bother going anywhere in First Heaven except straight into his own room. Shedding the gown and stepping into the shower, Issei pondered the events that had led to this and just what he might be asked. Would he just be asked for his own play-by-play of events? Would they try to browbeat a confession out of him? What was the unseen Raguel's mood like?

As he rubbed shampoo into his hair, he tried to shake the thoughts away and let them flow down the drain with the hot water. Elizabeth's words came back to him, and how the Saints they had talked to had all vouched for him. He could only hope that that was as true as she'd made it sound.

He did, at the very least, feel better once he'd been able to clean himself up.

After drying himself and dressing, he took a look at himself in the mirror to correct any imperfections he could note.

Issei found himself liking his appearance in these clothes.

* * *

Half an hour after he'd left, Elizabeth looked up from her book at the sound of Issei's voice. Her eyes swept over him, the teenager in the priestly clothes holding a used hospital gown. The Queen's eye was critical, though not unkind. After a few seconds, she clapped the book shut and set it down on the table in front of her and stood from the couch.

"You're ready, then?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"Follow me, then. We'll be walking this one."

* * *

Issei followed Elizabeth out of the hospital and out into the space between the buildings of Fifth Heaven. The building opened into a massive, grassy courtyard, all surrounded by a wrought-iron fence. Dozens of trees were scattered about, surrounded by numerous flowers. Through the center was a perfectly-laid brick path. The glow of the artificial sun hanging in the faraway sky washed the entire area in a beautiful light.

Issei knew that behind the hospital was a far more melancholy sight, one that even the brightest sun couldn't dull. He hoped he wouldn't be seeing it any time soon, no matter for himself or others.

Instead, he followed behind Elizabeth out of the courtyard and towards one of the other buildings.

The structure they were walking towards was crafted in the style of an office building. It was three stories tall, with numerous windows of varying sizes dotted around its outer structure. Its courtyard, in contrast to the hospital's, was pure stone without a hint of the greenery that defined the hospital's. The stone was beautiful, yes, but there was little eye for aesthetic besides.

One of the only similarities between the hospital and this new building was the glass doors.

Elizabeth pushed one open and held it for Issei as he walked through. As the brunette followed the mahogany-haired Queen through the door, his nervous increased tenfold.

It was clearly a building in the style of a police station, with a number of Angels milling about reviewing paperwork. To the left and right were long hallways that led who-knew-where, while a number of chairs were set out in front of the reception desk. Issei saw hard faces among the Angels present, and Issei immediately felt even more out-of-place than he had prior.

Issei remained momentarily rooted to the spot as Elizabeth strode confidently up to the front desk.

"Issei Hyoudou has awakened and is ready to speak to Lord Raguel about the incident."

The Angel behind the desk, unlike the somewhat slower writers Issei had encountered previously, jotted this down with incredible swiftness. "Understood," she said. "I'll send word to Lord Raguel of his arrival." She nodded towards one of the Angels standing nearby. Without a word exchanged between them, the other Angel nodded in reply and departed towards the door marked "Stairs".

The receptionist looked at Issei, her face expressionless. "Please take a seat and wait to be called. You'll be escorted to Lord Raguel at that time."

Issei nodded, but said nothing as he sat down in one of the chairs.

As Elizabeth turned and left, she gave him one last look, her eyes warm. She did not say anything else. What was there to say, really?

* * *

Every second that passed in that reception room made Issei increasingly anxious.

It wasn't that the room itself was uncomfortable, of course. The room was just the right temperature, calm and quiet. The Angels staffing the place didn't menace, threaten or indeed pay him much mind at all. Even the receptionist didn't once look at him after her initial instructions.

Among the Angels around him, he recognized one or two, but he didn't dare say anything.

The minutes ticked by at a glacial pace. Every second seemed to take ten times longer than it should have. Briefly, he considered consulting Ddraig and talking to him, but he immediately reconsidered. He didn't think that the Angels here would take well to the shattering of the quiet that loomed over the place.

 _Like waiting for your turn at the dentist..._

It was a similar fear, the type of fear that was worse torment than the actual reality of a situation. He would far prefer to be in the process of being asked questions than sitting there imagining it.

Issei's fingers twitched and his legs shook. He found himself chewing on his fingernails, something he hadn't done since he was young.

Ten minutes passed. Fifteen. Twenty. Twenty-five.

Almost exactly half an hour after Issei had been told to wait, the elevator door opened. Out stepped one Jessica Lagerkvist, looking just as sleepy as she had at the dinner he had shared with her.

After a moment of scanning the room, she took in the sight of the brunette Jack of Hearts, seated on a chair and looking like he was about to start pulling his own hair out.

"Issei Hyoudou? It's your turn."

* * *

Slowly, ever so slowly, Issei stood from the chair and crossed the room. Jessica stood patiently, Sandalphon's Queen remaining almost entirely expressionless.

Once he stood parallel with her, Jessica turned around and walked with Issei into the elevator. The doors swung shut a moment later, and Jessica pushed a button marked "3".

Issei tried to make small talk to calm his racing heart. "So is this a dual interview?" Beneath them, the elevator began to move upwards.

"No," Jessica replied. "I am acting as a scribe of sorts. Everything you say will be recorded, both on tape and on paper, for the sake of record. You're the only one left."

"The only one left?"

"The Brave Saints you've met have all been interviewed about your character. Xenovia Quarta has been asked about the events that led up to your evident battle with Lucas, given that she was the last person to see you before whatever happened happened. Lucas himself has claimed you attacked him out of nowhere and for no reason. He claimed you were ranting about a book."

Issei looked at her. "Should you really be telling me all this?"

A half-grin formed on her face. "Probably not."

As she said this, the elevator doors slid open.

"Follow me."

She walked down the hallway that the elevator opened into and took the first left that she reached. Issei scampered up behind her.

At the end of the hall, two massive oak doors barred their way. Above it there was a sign that read "Raguel".

Issei took a slow, deep breath.

"Try praying," Jessica said. "It's what the rest of the Saints use. It's an excellent way to keep your mind focused on something else."

"Nonreligious," Issei countered.

"The point stands," Jessica said as she reached up and slammed her fist into the door. The loud _bang_ reverberated through the hall, which hung silent otherwise. A moment passed before a muffled reply came from behind the door.

"Enter."

Without hesitating, Jessica took the handle, pulled the door open and ushered Issei through.

* * *

"Don't waste time bowing."

Those were the first words that Issei Hyoudou heard upon stepping through the doors, before he'd even had the chance to take in the speaker seated at the desk.

The room itself was pure white in every direction, from stone to tile, contrasting harshly with the stained wooden desk at which the speaker sat. Behind the speaker was a window that stretched from floor to ceiling, each

The speaker was, like all of Heaven's Seraphs, blonde-haired. His hair was cut incredibly short, sliced to the point that his hair didn't even cover his ears. The hair on top of his head was thicker, but not by much. His face was as expressionless as his secretary.

"Issei Hyoudou, correct?"

"Yes, Lord Raguel. A pleasure to meet you."

The Seraph nodded and gestured to the chair in front of him. "Take a seat." His voice was nonjudgmental, but also very guarded. There was no way for Issei to tell what his thoughts might be.

It reminded him distinctly of Uriel when they first met.

Once he had done so, Jessica took a seat off to the side of the desk, a large notepad and pen in her hand.

Raguel leaned back in his chair, fingers interlocking as he looked Issei over. He remained silent for several moments.

Issei refused to show weakness and break the Seraph's stare, despite his heart threatening mutiny against the bones of his chest.

For those moments, the only sounds were those made by Jessica's pen tapping against the paper.

Then, Raguel nodded. "Well, I suppose you might as well start at the beginning of this incident. How did you come to be alone with Lucas?"

Issei ran his tongue along his teeth before he spoke. "Well... first, I need to know something in order to get one of the details right."

"What's that?"

"How long was I out?"

"Almost a day. It's Thursday where you're from, Issei."

"All right, then. Well, Tuesday evening, I had dinner with the rest of Lady Gabriel's Saints and a few others. During the meal, Lady Gabriel mentioned increasing my skills with drawing out Ascalon's potential. Xenovia offered to help me, given that she's a natural-born Holy Sword wielder."

Only then did another thought occur to him, but he pushed it away for the time being.

Raguel nodded. "I'm following."

"Xenovia and I met, and the two of us crossed blades for a little bit before we got started. She showed me a Holy wave from the Durandal, and I wanted to see her sword. It doesn't like me much, if you're wondering. Anyway, she picked up Ascalon, and it did _not_ like her. Sliced her hand open, actually. She went and got it bandaged, and she started to show me how to draw more potential out of a sword. It's a simple process, as I'm sure you know, and we both decided we'd rather just duel with our swords for a while." A tiny smile came across his face. "It was a lot of fun, actually..."

Issei exhaled. "Anyway, after about an hour, Xenovia got a call from her institution. Apparently they needed her to come by and cover someone else that afternoon. She left right after that, and I hung around the training field for a while. Extra practice and all that. After a while, I started chatting with Ddraig, and the conversation turned to the Dragon Kings and the sword Gram. I'm sure you know all about those?"

"Indeed."

Issei nodded. "Then, right after we finished, I heard footsteps behind me. I turn around, and there's Lord Raziel's Nine. He's got Excalibur Destruction in his hand. Obviously, I'm already worried. I mean, this person's already lied to me once-"

"Oh?" Raguel asked. "What was the nature of that lie?"

The Jack swallowed. "Well, sir, we're going to have to step back a few months."

"I'm listening."

"Do you remember that Fallen Angel the Joker, the Queen of Hearts and I captured during our attack on the church?"

"I never met her personally, but I did hear of her, yes. Didn't she try to murder you?"

"Yes, sir," Issei said. He shuddered slightly at the memory, and gave a shake of his head. "Anyways, that's not important. What is important is that this Fallen Angel wanted to talk to me and I obliged her. What she and I said to each other isn't important. The important part is that when I met Lucas, he was nervous and told me that he'd been reincarnated recently. Lord Raziel, however, says otherwise, that he was one of the very first people to be selected."

Raguel nodded. "That is the case, yes."

"Anyway, back to yesterday. He's standing there with the Excalibur Destruction. Obviously, with the lie he'd told me and with that weapon in his hand, I already knew something was wrong. He tried to chat with me, told me he'd come to try and help me. It got into a discussion of fire, and how I learned to combine holy and fire elements together..."

"And?"

"...well," Issei said, trying to figure out how to phrase it so that Jessica wouldn't be clued in to what was going on. "...he mentioned something he shouldn't have known."

"Which was?"

Issei found himself grinding his teeth for several seconds. There was no possible way to tell Raguel what had happened without giving the fact that there were traitors in Heaven away!

"Lord Raguel, if I may?"

Issei and the Seraph both looked over at the speaker – Jessica herself.

"Yes, Jessica? You have something to add?"

"Yes, sir." She looked at the Jack of Hearts. "Issei, if it loosens your tongue any, I've already been informed about the existence of traitors in Heaven. While I'm as sworn to secrecy as you are, you're free to speak about anything related to it that you wish in here."

"Ah," Raguel said. "I apologize, Issei. I should have told you that from the off."

"Thank you for that," Issei said. "Well then, I told him that I'd figured out how to combine light and fire, and he mentioned that the library had a book on that. He cut himself off halfway through the sentence. When I called him on it, he tried to play stupid until I pressed him. That's when he attacked me."

Issei gave a brief play-by-play of the battle that had occurred between Issei and Lucas, how he had dodged the Destruction's strikes but was ultimately struck by flying debris created by its Holy wave.

"My memory's a bit blurry after that. I remember crashing into him in midair, fire, and crawling. I _think_ Lady Gabriel's Queen was the one who found me, but I'm not sure. The exacts are... shaky. I'm sorry, sir."

"That's fine, thank you. Is there anything else?"

Issei licked his teeth again before shaking his head. "No sir, there isn't. Nothing I can think of. Except... I do have a question."

"What's that?"

"I don't know if you'd know, but... where's Ascalon? What's happened to it? I dropped it during the fight with Lucas, I think, and I haven't seen it."

"Unfortunately, I don't know, Issei Hyoudou. You'll have to ask your King or the Queen of Hearts."

"Thank you, sir. I'll do that."

Raguel turned to look at Jessica. "You recorded all of that?"

"Indeed I did, sir," she said.

The Seraph turned to look once more at Issei. "Well then, Issei, you may go. You are, however, to remain in Heaven until I or one of the other Seraphim tells you otherwise. You may travel freely between the first five floors, but do not leave."

"Yes, sir. Would it be possible for me to contact my parents, however? They're probably worried sick."

"That'll be fine. You may use teleportation to exit."

"Thank you, sir."

Issei didn't bother standing before he vanished into a cross.

* * *

Contrary to what one might expect, Issei didn't appear in the middle of his room in First Heaven. He didn't know where his phone was to begin with, and he had a sneaking suspicion that his phone had been tossed.

Instead, his cross formed near the entrance to the training field.

He entered the building slowly, eyes darting back and forth. He had been attacked here once. A little caution wouldn't go amiss.

There was no one there that he could see.

The Jack of Hearts did not accelerate as he walked through the building, and he kept all his senses on high alert. He wanted his sword back, and he naturally had to wonder if it might have been left here, perhaps exactly where it fell. He hoped desperately that it was.

When he pushed the door to the training field open, however, he was disappointed. He took in the sight of the entire field, the stones and seats, and there was no hint of Saint George's sword. For that matter, there was no hint that any of the previous day's events had happened. All of the damage that had been inflicted to the stones had been repaired, and the blood trail that he'd supposedly left had been cleaned as well.

Issei found himself clawing at his chest at this thought.

Even despite the obvious absence of the blade, Issei walked further into the training field anyway, as though his presence might make it appear. That, and to recall the events of the previous day.

Those events didn't hurt in recall, really. He'd known there were Angels in Heaven who wanted his blood, and he'd known that Lucas was a liar. Trust hadn't been broken because there was no trust to begin with.

The brunette began chewing his lip as he thought over his temporary confinement. Raguel hadn't said when he might be contacted, but Issei wasn't an idiot. He knew that he was awaiting the Seraphs to decide who the liar was – him or Lucas. He had his own word and he trusted Elizabeth to tell him the truth.

All that was left was hope, that foolish little emotion that never seemed to quite extinguish.

"I thought you might come here."

Issei was yanked out of his thoughts by the unmistakable sound of Gabriel's voice. He spun.

There, leaning on the wall about ten feet away, was his King.

"How long have you been there?" Issei asked.

"Since I heard you'd awoken. I, naturally, wasn't informed until you'd already gone to make your statement. The last time I saw you, they were getting ready to take you in for surgery." She let out a sigh as she pushed off the wall, and Issei could see the relief in her face. Issei didn't resist in the slightest as Gabriel embraced him, and he had no problem returning the gesture. There was nothing teasing about her motions in the slightest.

"I'm just glad you're okay," the King of Hearts whispered in his ear. She pulled back a bit, though one arm remained around his back. Her free hand cupped his cheek. "You're sure you're all right, though? Nothing's hurting?" she asked, her tone that of a mother worried about her son.

"No, my Lady. I'm fine, really... minus one thing."

"What's that?"

"My parents. They haven't seen me in over a day and they're probably worried. You wouldn't happen to know what's become of my phone, would you? Or my school uniform, for that matter?"

Gabriel's eyes fell. "Issei, your clothing was torn, scorched and bloodstained. They literally had to cut them off of you; there was no way to remove them otherwise. The clothes have been thrown away. Your cell phone _was_ found in your pocket, but in was in the same condition, damaged beyond repair and certainly unusable. We threw it away. I'm sorry."

Issei shook his head. "Not a problem, my Lady. What had to be done had to be done. Is there another phone I could use, though?"

"Of course," Gabriel said, nodding. Only then did she pull back completely. "The Hearts building has one in my spare office. You can use that one." A smile came over her face. "The rest of the deck probably wants to see you up and about as much as I did." The grin widened. " _Especially_ my dear Ace..." A finger set itself under her chin, head tipping sideways, and a familiar mischievous quality overtook it. "Shall we teleport back or fly?"

Issei let a small grin creep across his face. "Let's fly, shall we?"

* * *

The flight back was short and sweet.

Gabriel looked every bit the regal and powerful Seraph she was with her wings spread wide. Issei simply enjoyed the feeling of air beneath his wings once again, his recovered body taking the strain of the flight in stride.

As they walked through the Hearts building, Issei could hear voices down the hall. They were excited, Issei could tell that much.

Rounding the corner, Issei was not surprised to find every other card in the Hearts deck, from Ace to Nine, standing there, sans the King.

"Issei!"

The cry wasn't from any one of the ladies there; it was unanimous, all said with immense excitement and relief.

Mirana was on him before he'd taken two steps, her slender arms thrown around him. The others of the deck had swarmed him a moment later, and Issei quickly found himself in the middle of an Angel-hug sandwich.

Griselda was happy enough that she didn't even grow angry when Mirana kissed him.

* * *

After nearly a minute, the group pulled back and all began asking him questions at once. Issei couldn't make out anything anyone had said over the cacophony of four voices.

One, however, made itself eminently clear.

"Now, now," Gabriel said, "you'll have plenty of time to extract the million and one details from Issei later. Right now, though, Issei has something he needs to do, doesn't he?" She looked at her Jack knowingly.

"Right..." Issei said, chuckling. "Parents."

"Follow me, Issei," Gabriel said, walking down the corridor opposite to the one that led to the Saint's rooms.

* * *

Issei scampered along behind Gabriel, striding down the hallway.

The brunette had never bothered to go down this hallway before. Griselda had made it clear from the very beginning that Gabriel's spare office was completely off-limits without his King's explicit consent and approval to his being inside it. And of course, Issei had never had any reason to want to go in there.

As a result, he was a stranger to this area.

The corridor, unlike the one that lead to the Saint's rooms, took a single bend to the right, stopping a few feet later at a solid wooden door. From her coat, Gabriel produced a solid, iron key.

"Something to be said for a simple lock."

A loud _click_ echoed down the hall as she turned it in the keyhole.

The room that was revealed was as immaculate as one might expect from a Seraph. It wasn't enormous, but it remained spare nonetheless. Every item had a place, and there wasn't even a hint of disorder. On the wooden desk that dominated the room was the mentioned phone. It was a wireless example, the type one might find in a modern office.

"Go on, Issei. You have the number, correct?"

"Of course. Thank you for this, Lady Gabriel."

"You're welcome."

Issei, of course, knew how to work a phone, and within seconds, he'd dialed in his house number. His call was answered after the first ring.

"Hello?" His mother's voice was hushed, hopeful but frightened.

"Mom?"

Almost immediately, Issei had to hold the phone away from his ear as his name was screamed through the phone.

"Yes, Mom, it's me!" Issei called back from over a foot away.

After several seconds, the volume of his mother's voice quieted enough that Issei could put the phone against his head again.

"Issei?" his mother said, obviously worried sick. "Where are you? What's going on? Why haven't you come home?"

"I'm in Heaven, Mom," Issei said. "Have been since yesterday. There was an incident in Heaven yesterday, and my phone got broken. Since then, I've been so preoccupied that I literally haven't had any time to call you. I'm fine, don't worry."

Issei could hear his mother taking deep breaths. He could just picture her there, cheeks puffed out and bright red, standing in her kitchen, relieved beyond words that her son was safe. The thought made him smile, an expression that was promptly dashed by his mother's inevitable next question.

"So when are you coming back?"

Issei sighed. "Well, on the orders of the Seraphim, I'm not permitted to leave Heaven until further notice. I'm sorry, Mom."

"When will that be?"

"I have no idea. I'll try to keep in touch, but I don't have regular access to a phone."

A slow, sad sigh came out of his mother, but she didn't argue. "Okay. I understand. Hopefully you'll be back soon. We love you, Issei. Your father and I both."

A small smile came to Issei's face once more. "I love you too, Mom. Dad too."

"Good-bye, Issei. See you then."

"See you then."

The line clicked off, and Issei put the phone up. Then, he turned to Gabriel.

"Thank you, Lady Gabriel."

She nodded, a serene expression on her face. "You're welcome, Issei." As if to strengthen that statement, she hugged him again for a brief moment. Once she released him, she turned to go. Issei, however, did not move, and the King of Hearts turned to look at him after a moment. "Is something the matter, Issei?"

Issei nodded, hand under his chin. "Lady Gabriel, now that that's sorted, there's the other question of what's missing. Do you, by any chance, know where Ascalon is? I dropped it during the fight with Lucas, and I've yet to find it. That's why I went to the field, actually – Lord Raguel didn't know where it was and I thought it might have been left there."

Gabriel smiled. "Issei, Ascalon was one of the first things removed. I put it back in your scabbard and left it on your bed."

She'd expected this news to bring an expression of relief to her Jack's face, and some happiness. The sole female Seraph could hear in his voice his attachment to the blade, and she was happy to alleviate it.

What she didn't expect was for Issei's face to become suddenly and _incredibly_ alarmed.

"Issei, what's wrong?" she asked.

He swallowed. "Lady Gabriel... I was in my room earlier when I was getting a shower and getting changed. Ascalon isn't there."

* * *

 _And cut._

 _HAH! I updated_ _ **before**_ _you were allowed to start bugging me! Take THAT!_

 _I'd also guess that this whole "much longer chapters" thing is appreciated by you lot._


	62. Things Fixed, Things Broken

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

It didn't take but a fraction of a moment for Gabriel's face to mirror Issei's alarm, and she seized his shoulders. "Issei, are you absolutely certain?"

Issei nodded, and within seconds Gabriel's hand had slid down Issei's left arm to pull him along.

The door slammed so hard that Issei was sure that cracks would form in the wood, but Issei didn't get more than a fraction of a second to look before he was pulled around the corner. Gabriel was a thin woman, but she was exceedingly strong, and Issei's weight didn't slow her even slightly. Within seconds they stood before the rest of the deck.

Any words died in the women's throats as they took in the sight of their King's face.

"Did any of you enter Issei's room in the last twenty-four hours?"

All furiously shook their heads, but none spoke in reply.

Gabriel spun around, and in the same motion snaked her arms around Issei's shoulders. "Issei, remain in this building until one of the Seraphim orders you otherwise. I do not care who they are or how much authority they claim to have. Unless one of the Seraphim _personally_ comes here and orders you otherwise, you do not leave. I must inform my brothers in Zebel of this." Her head turned and swept across her deck. "That same instruction goes for all of you, as well. _No one_ leaves."

"Lady Gabriel?" Asia asked, her voice trembling. "Wh-what's going on?" The blonde nun had only once seen her King in this state, and she was terrified of it.

"Someone has stolen Issei's blade, and I have good reason to believe that that someone intends to use it against him."

Asia gasped in horror.

"Of course..." Griselda murmured, teeth clenched. "As the wielder of the Boosted Gear, Issei is vulnerable to anti-dragon magics..."

"Precisely so, my Queen. As if I need say it, that information does not leave this room. You are not to receive visitors other than the Seraphim, either. No one comes in or out of this building until Heaven's leadership says otherwise."

"Yes, Lady Gabriel!" the entire deck said at once.

"Very good. I must return to my office and activate the teleportation lockdown procedures. I will lock the door as I depart."

Gabriel nodded and vanished down the hall. After a few moments, the Brave Saints all felt the building become surrounded by the same magics employed in Second Heaven. A few seconds after that, Gabriel came back down the hall, nodded at them once more, and left through the front door.

* * *

As Gabriel arrived in Zebel, she wasn't particularly surprised to find all of the Seraphim seated at the table in Zebel's hub. Nor was she particularly surprised to see that Raziel had tears in his eyes.

"So then, Gabriel, you finally deign to join us," Raphael said, his tone letting his sister know that he wasn't even slightly angry.

"Indeed..." she said. A heavy sigh passed through her as she looked Raziel over. The wild-haired Seraph appeared bewildered, sorrowful, pained and lost all in the same expression. "I must assume you have come to an agreement?"

Raguel nodded, but it was Michael who spoke. "We have examined all of the evidence available to us and all of the statements given by the Saints. They all say the same thing. Even given his argumentative nature, your Jack is among Heaven's most loyal, and all are in agreement that unless sufficiently provoked, Issei Hyoudou simply does not pick fights. Issei Hyoudou and Xenovia Quarta's account of the events that lead up to the incident synchronize perfectly, as well. We have also contacted the Vatican, and while they admit to giving Raziel's Nine the Excalibur Destruction, he refused to explain why he wanted it. In addition to that, Raziel's Ten has shared that Lucas, at one point, mentioned how much he wished Issei would, and I quote, "just fall already". All circumstantial evidence, perhaps, but it all points to the same conclusion."

Gabriel turned to Raziel, eyes full of sympathy. "I... I'm sorry, Raziel."

Raziel shook his head, wiping at his eyes and saying nothing in response. Gabriel's eyes turned back to Michael. "Lucas is to be cast from Heaven, then?"

"Naturally," Raguel said.

"The first Brave Saint to fall," Raziel said, his voice trying and failing to stay controlled, "and it's one of mine...?"

On impulse, Gabriel walked over to Raziel and gently pulled him into a soft hug. "I know how cliché this will sound, brother, but... you did not do this."

"I know," he said, his voice tight with pain as he hugged her back. "That doesn't make it hurt any less..."

All of the other Seraphs felt the truth in his words. A Brave Saint card was not just an object. To the Seraphs, the only ones yet able to use the Brave Saint cards, to offer a person a place as a Brave Saint was an expression of trust and utmost faith in them. They symbolized the Seraph's, and through them Heaven's, collective hopes for the future. To see one of those selected fail that trust, break that faith, was not just a sign that the chosen Saint was not worthy – it was a betrayal. Any of an Angel's Saints falling was bound to leave immense pain in its wake. Even Gabriel would have been cut deeply if Issei, the sole exception to the carefully selected Saints, had chosen to fall, willingly unbound himself from Heaven.

Raguel heaved a sigh. "Would you like me to handle the sentencing, Raziel?"

At that, Raziel pulled back from his sister's hug, head shaking. "No. I am his King. This shall be my last action as such."

With that, Raziel stood from his chair, stepped away so that his back faced his siblings. Then, he vanished into a cross.

* * *

It was with an air of deep grief and sadness that Raziel appeared in Second Heaven.

Most days that the wild-haired Seraph came here, he barely bothered moving from the spot he appeared in. He would simply lean his head back, stargazing and soaking in the quiet of Second Heaven.

Today, though, he walked slowly. His normally jubilant eyes and face were vacant as he approached the stone buildings of the Heaven's prisons.

After he entered, he fixed a long stare at the Angel who was behind the desk – the same desk Lucas had staffed.

"Sir?" the Angel asked, and the Seraph vaguely supposed he must have been addressed.

"Bring me to Lucas," Raziel said.

"Right away, sir."

The Angel fiddled with their desk, seeking out the key to the cell Lucas was in. The Seraphs had known from the beginning that Lucas was likely the initiator, and that this was likely to end this way. Raziel just hadn't wanted to believe it.

When the Angel had retrieved it, they set off through the joyless rows of cells, coming to a door identical to all the others.

"Here we are, sir."

The key entered and turned in the lock, a loud, hollow _clack_ echoing down the halls. Then, the door swung open, and through it Raziel stepped with the extracted key.

* * *

Lucas Truman had been a wonderful young man at one time, a powerhouse of the Protestant Church and an immensely skilled combatant, yet not lacking in kindness.

Now, that same young man, missing an arm, appeared dirty, disheveled and more than a bit enraged. Yet despite that, he greeted his own King with a cautious friendliness.

"Lord Raziel!"

"No."

Lucas' face began to twist, from its formerly handsome countenance to one of extreme fear.

"I am not "Lord" to you any longer, Lucas Truman. The Seraph's judgment has been passed. You will be cast from Heaven and deleted from the system. Your wings will blacken and your halo will disappear. Begging me will change nothing. But you knew that already, didn't you?"

Lucas didn't answer.

"That, then, leaves just one last thing for me to decipher. Why?"

No response was forthcoming from Raziel's former Nine. As Raziel continued, the tears he had suppressed had begun to flow freely down his cheeks.

"I chose you for my Brave Saints almost as soon as the cards had been placed into my hand. I still remember your face on the day I offered ascension to you. You were so happy that I thought you were going to start kissing my hand. So then... _why_ , Lucas?"

Still Lucas did not speak.

"I know of your group, of the ones who reject the peace. Do you despise that idea so much? The idea that Devils, Fallen Angels and Angels themselves can live together without killing each other?"

Lucas refused to reply.

"Did you really hate Issei Hyoudou so much that you were willing to betray the Heaven you swore to serve just to hurt him? What has that poor boy ever done to deserve that, from any of you who have betrayed us? His past isn't that of a faithful believer, no, and he is far from perfect. Yet you'll never hear him claim to be either. And he's more driven than nearly any Angel I've seen."

Without giving his former Saint a chance to answer, Raziel swallowed.

"Or is it me that you wanted to hurt? Because if that's why you did what you did, then consider that mission accomplished."

Silence.

"Answer me, Lucas. If you would ever do me a final kindness, speak to me. Tell me _why_."

The silence held for several seconds more, before Lucas finally spoke again.

"Because Issei Hyoudou is an insult to every believer, every Angel, every Seraph, and God himself. He's worthless, and no amount of training, education, and faith will _ever_ change that. He fails on every front of being a Brave Saint."

Slowly, Raziel processed his words, and as he did, his head began to shake and his lips turned into a humorless, sad smile. "No, Lucas Truman, he is not. Issei Hyoudou deserves his place among the ranks of Heaven." A sad breath left the Seraph before he spoke again.

"The person you just described was yourself."

Lucas simply glared at Raziel in response.

"You, Lucas Truman, are dead to me. You have destroyed my trust and wounded me dearly. I hope you feel it was worth it, because you will never return to Heaven while I still breathe."

With that, Raziel turned and walked out, eyes shut as he exited the cell.

As he watched him go, the Angel who had let Raziel in narrowed his eyes at the Seraph's back.

* * *

When Raziel left, Gabriel let out a sad sigh.

"Well then, Gabriel," Uriel said, "I'd gather by the look on your face that you've got something you want to share."

The King of Hearts nodded. "I don't have any good news for you. It's come to my attention that Ascalon has been stolen from my Jack's room while he was unconscious."

" _What?_ " several of the Seraphs said simultaneously.

"What would they want with Ascalon?" the Seraph known as Remiel asked.

"My Jack wields the Boosted Gear," Gabriel reminded him. "He is thus vulnerable to Ascalon's blade. And these traitors despise his very existence. I shouldn't need to put the pieces together for you."

Remiel shook his head. "Then that leaves me with a question – how many Angels knew about the blade being there?"

Gabriel bit her lip. "I'm unsure of that myself, but it couldn't have been many. I was one of the ones who examined the scene, if you'll recall. After Raguel cleared it, I took Ascalon and stowed it within my robes. It wasn't until the training room had been thoroughly examined and fixed that I left to return it to my Jack's bedroom. I must assume one of them followed me." She shook her head, anger at herself flowing through. "If I'd been intelligent about it, I would have just kept the blade on my person and given it back to Issei myself. Perhaps I thought that these despicable traitors wouldn't be so bold... naive of me."

"I don't intend any offense, Gabriel," Sandalphon said, "but is there a possibility that your own Saints might be cooperating with these traitors, or at least looked the other way? Your Queen was very opposed to Issei's position as a Brave Saint, if I recall."

"That has changed," Gabriel said, "thanks to Issei's attempts to help Xenovia Quarta. Xenovia and Asia are both quite fond of him as well. No surprises there, of course – both of them are in Heaven because of him, one way or another."

"That leaves your Ace, then."

Gabriel let out a humorless laugh. "Not a chance. I have seen how these two interact. Mirana seems to be falling for him, and whatever Mirana is, I can tell you that she is _not_ a good actress."

A small smirk came onto Raguel's face at that. "I wonder what your Jack thinks of this."

"I don't think he's realized it yet," the King of Hearts said. "Now then, have I answered why it's astronomically unlikely that any of my own Saints are involved in this incident?"

"That you have," Michael said.

"Good. Now then, Uriel, I have a question for you, one of great importance."

"Which is?" her brother asked.

"When will you be finished with that procedure to expand my Jack's magical reserves? He has lost his main weapon and it will likely be turned against him in the very near future."

Uriel nodded. "If I get some peace and quiet..." He let out a slow breath. "If no one interrupts me at all, I can finish that procedure in a few hours."

Michael nodded back. "Go immediately then, Uriel. Finish your work. I will send word that you are not to be disturbed until you say otherwise."

"Thank you, Michael." With that, Uriel stood, pushed his chair in and vanished into a cross.

When he had gone, all heads turned back to Gabriel as she cleared her throat. "With that, my brothers, I must return to First Heaven and inform my Saint that he is out of this particular fire, though it seems another has lit beneath him in the meantime."

The Seraphs nodded, and Gabriel vanished as well.

* * *

Twenty minutes earlier, Issei Hyoudou had collapsed into a chair in the Hearts building, emotionally exhausted from the constant smacks of late.

"So you're really okay, Issei?" Asia asked.

"Yeah, still breathing, still working," he said, nodding slowly.

"Issei, what happened?" Xenovia asked. "I left, was told my boss never sent for me when I arrived, came straight back and you were nearly dead on an operating table!"

"Well, it goes like this..."

As Issei gave a play-by-play of exactly what had led to he and Lucas trying to kill each other, the expressions of those around him varied wildly from confusion to fear. Numerous times, they stopped him to ask questions that he was more than happy to answer.

When he finished, they were all struck quiet for several seconds.

"So..." Asia finally asked, "... _why?_ Why would anyone want to do that, Issei?"

Issei shrugged. "Obviously he didn't like me. Otherwise? Not sure."

The brunette felt horrible having to hide information from the rest of the deck, but Gabriel's orders were absolute.

"We _assumed_ that much, Issei," Griselda said. "Otherwise he would not have attempted to murder you."

"What can I say? I'm not in his head. I don't know how his mind works."

Griselda shot a rather suspicious look at him, but she let the subject drop.

"Anyway," Issei asked, "why'd you turn up? Some alarm?"

Griselda shook her head. "No, Issei. I came to the training field to ensure you two stayed on task, given how... _flighty_ the two of you can be. Evidently you did not."

Xenovia and Issei each gave an innocent whistle at this.

"Anyway, I came to the training field and found you near death. The last time I saw you, they were cutting you out of your clothes so they could operate. Now then, who would want to hurt you with Ascalon, Issei? Do you have some enemy in Heaven that we are unaware of?"

Issei shrugged helplessly and didn't say anything.

* * *

It wasn't but five minutes later that the Saints of Gabriel heard the locked door open. Instantly, every single Saint had a weapon in their hands, whether a light sword or magic, to answer the intruder. Even Asia had formed a wyvern as large as her from water to add to the effort.

Needless to say, when the intruder presented themselves, the Saints were left feeling like fools as they bowed.

"Dear me," Gabriel said dryly, "you're all quite jumpy. I suppose it's no surprise, though. You may all stand – but put your weapons away."

Sheepishly, the weapons vanished and Issei and Asia's respective magics disappeared as the saints rose.

"Well, Issei, I have something like good news," Gabriel said. "The Seraphs have made their judgment. You will not be cast down."

Issei exhaled, sighing with relief.

"That was rapid," Griselda noted.

"In the final assessment, there was simply no contest," said Gabriel. "Issei had the words of numerous Saints backing his and the firsthand observations of several Seraphs. Lucas had neither and had at least once commented that he wanted Issei out of Heaven. What argument was left?" She shook her head. "Then, Issei, there is the second piece of news, this one unambiguously good for us all. Uriel should have the procedure to expand your reserves of magical energy completed by the end of the night. Though I must ask that you continue to uphold the restriction I placed upon you until that time, at which point I will escort you to him _personally_. I don't mean to come off as controlling, but I'd rather avoid taking any needless chances. You've been attacked once and somehow, I doubt this was a one-off event."

Issei and Gabriel were the only ones who understood what was really being said: _Lucas probably wasn't the one pulling the strings._

"I understand, Lady Gabriel," Issei said. "Your orders will be complied with."

The Seraph nodded. "Then I shall leave you to your own devices once again. I have something I must take care of in Fifth Heaven." With that, the King of Hearts departed once more.

After the door locked, Issei stood up and stretched. "I don't know about any of you," Issei said as his joints popped and cracked, "but I'm going to change. Might want something looser if I'm going to be here until midnight or so."

"Understandable," Griselda said.

"Makes sense," Xenovia said.

"All right, Issei," Asia said.

Mirana, looking somewhat crestfallen, simply nodded.

* * *

As Issei pulled his shoes off, he felt his eyelids drooping. He wasn't entirely surprised. Recovering from major surgery, even one done with the immense aid of magic, required more than almost a day's worth of sleep. Issei would rather not have known this personally, but his situation was what it was.

After the brunette changed into a night shirt and laid his robes on the table to deal with later, he flopped down on the bed.

His mind began racing almost immediately.

It turned over the events of the last few days, of the events after the Peace Conference, his parents finding him out, his battle with Lucas and subsequent surgery. He looked up his left arm, the one that had been shredded by the flying debris, and his teeth clenched. The numerous small scars that now specked it in tiny, angry slashes hadn't grown any more pleasant to look at. And all of that had been the result of a now-Fallen Angel that wasn't even that far up the totem pole, power-wise.

 _Who's running this freak show?_

It had to be someone high up, that was certain. Someone who commanded power and respect, more than likely a ten-winged Angel. That, or several of them.

He only knew one of those, and somehow Issei doubted that Dulio had had anything to do with this group of subversives. That, or Dulio was a far better actor than he'd given him credit for, given how well he and the Jack had instantly gotten along.

Issei shook his head. He couldn't be suspecting his own friends among the Saints of conspiracy, could he? And yet the possibility did not entirely leave his mind.

The sound of knuckles on the wood of his door broke him from his thoughts, and he swung his legs over the bed.

"Who is it?" Issei called.

"It's me, Issei."

Issei stood and pulled the door open, revealing Mirana Shatarova.

She had changed her outfit; instead of the black sister's uniform she had been wearing, she now wore a simple white top and slacks, an outfit quite unlike what he had ever seen her wear before.

"I..." she stammered, biting her lip. "...would you mind if I spent some time with you? Just the two of us?"

Issei smiled. "Sure, Mirana. Come in."

The young Russian Angel returned the grin and walked in, taking a seat on Issei's bed and patting the sheets next to her.

Issei's smile became a smirk. "Oh, getting some lecherous thoughts of your own, are we?"

Mirana's face turned candy-apple red at that, but Issei sat down anyway.

"I... came by to see you after they pulled you out..." Mirana whispered. "I was afraid you'd never wake up, you were so badly hurt..."

"Fifth Heaven's quite good at what they do."

"Indeed they are..." Mirana said, her face breaking into a relieved smile. "It's nice to see you up and about after that, Issei. It really is."

"You're welcome, Mirana."

In a very sudden display, Mirana turned and threw her arms around Issei's neck, holding him close. Issei could feel her breasts against his chest, but the gesture didn't seem teasing.

"Why _do_ you hug me so much these days?" Issei asked with a knowing smirk on his face as he returned her embrace.

"If you weren't so easy to hug and didn't make me want to do it so much, I wouldn't," Mirana replied as she squeezed him tighter. "What, is it not enough?"

"Are you asking me or yourself?"

"Can't it be both?"

"So you want to go further, that's what you're saying?"

"If you're willing."

Issei's lips claimed Mirana's the moment she finished saying this, kissing her more fiercely than he had before.

The brunette, however, quickly found her pushing back, returning the kiss with more force. As she continued kissing him, she began to press harder against him, and Issei found himself rolling backwards, Mirana squeezing him tighter with every second.

After a few moments, the two Saints came up for air and the brunette realized exactly where he was and what he was doing.

Mirana was lying atop him while he lay on his back on his bed, their arms wrapped tightly around each other. Mirana was blushing and smiling happily down at him, her lengthy hair cascading gently onto Issei's cheek.

 _We must look exactly like lovers..._

Issei couldn't help how Mirana made him feel. Something about her made it so very easy to be secure and comforted in her arms. But at the same time...

A thought of another woman flashed through his head, and Issei's smile collapsed.

"Issei?" Mirana asked. "Is something wrong?"

After a moment, Issei began to shake his head. "N-no... I don't think so, anyway."

"I disagree."

Mirana's hug released as soon as the voice of Griselda echoed across the room, and she slid off of Issei to allow him to sit up.

In the doorway, the Queen of Hearts stood with her arms folded and the expected aggravation on her face.

"Hey, Griselda..." Issei said, his face turning red. "How long have you been there...?"

"Long enough." She pointed a finger at Mirana. "There is only so much that can be excused by simple affection. What you were just doing is _not_ within those bounds."

"And who made you the adjudicator of that?" Mirana asked, the Ace standing from the bed. "So what if I want to treat my fellow Saint that way? If he doesn't have any objections, we won't be falling just because of that. Our wings weren't even flickering."

"It is still inappropriate."

"So's coming by to spy on someone else," Issei pointed out.

"It is not my fault that you failed to close the door."

"Your room is three doors back."

"I would not have to break you two apart so often if you behaved according to your stations as Brave Saints. And as I have said, I find it difficult to believe that this is simple affection."

"And if you're wrong?" Mirana asked.

"Then I am wrong." Without another word, Griselda spun on her heels and walked back through the hallway.

* * *

Unbeknownst to any of them, Xenovia had been listening through the door of her room. Across from Issei's, the wood frame didn't block as much sound as one might expect.

She sighed, rubbing her temples. Those two needed to confess to each other and go on a date already. They seemed to be the only ones who hadn't figured out that the other one was interested yet.

* * *

The departure of the Queen of Hearts left a broken mood in its wake.

Mirana and Issei, Ace and Jack, had been happy. Then, the walking buzzkill that was Griselda Quarta had arrived, and now the idea of trying to reignite that moment seemed awkward to both of them. Neither said it, but both had the same thought.

So for an hour or so, the two did exactly what Mirana had suggested they do.

After taking seats at the table in his room, the two began to discuss whatever came to mind. They tried to stay off of heavier subjects, but anything else was fair game.

Yet even as Issei and Mirana spoke, the two were aware of the small wall of formality that, while invisible, was completely real to the both of them.

In the end, the conversation came out rather impersonal, and Mirana eventually excused herself.

Not long after, Issei fell asleep.

* * *

The brunette had no idea how long he had been asleep when he heard his own name being spoken. With his brain still half-asleep, he also didn't register who exactly was speaking as his eyelids unwillingly pulled themselves open as he let out an annoyed grunt.

"Issei, get up."

"Can this wait...?" Issei muttered.

"No, it cannot. Uriel has finished his work."

It was at those words that Issei's mind began working again, and when it did, he stiffened.

"Of course, Lady Gabriel. I'll be ready in a moment."

After sliding shoes on, he stepped towards the Seraph standing in the hall.

There was an elevator in Heaven, but Gabriel simply chose to take him herself.

* * *

When the cross the two had used to teleport had re-formed into their own figures, Issei wasn't released right away. Instead, Gabriel kept her arms around him, hugging momentarily as though he was about to drop dead.

Issei let her do it without protest.

After a few seconds, she let him go and Issei was able to get a look at his surroundings.

He was back in Fifth Heaven, but it wasn't the hospital and it wasn't the building Raguel ran. It was, instead, a laboratory, with several Angels milling about, looking at paperwork of one kind or another. Issei followed Gabriel down one of the hallways, taking turns that twisted this way and that. Issei knew they were going to Uriel, but nothing else besides that.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, going up two staircases, before they entered what appeared to be some sort of break room. There were several chairs, a table, a stove and the like, along with a few books. Only one Angel was present, who bowed.

"You may rise," Gabriel said, the first words she'd spoken since she arrived.

"Thank you, Lady Gabriel. I've been told to inform you that Uriel insists upon meeting Issei alone and that he intends to seal the room to sound and soul once he is inside. He demands you remain outside until he is finished with your Jack."

"And why is that?" Gabriel asked.

"He did not say, my Lady. That was his insistence, and he says that he will not perform the procedure without him and Issei being alone."

Gabriel turned to look at her Saint, then back to the Angel. "Very well. Though I must insist that my Jack has the right to leave if Uriel decides to conduct further "experiments" on him without his consent."

"He's already anticipated you would say that, Lady Gabriel. He has said he does not intend to cause your Saint unnecessary pain."

Gabriel exhaled. "Those words are meaningless, but I suppose that he holds the cards. As you wish."

The Angel nodded to Issei, stepped towards him, arm extended. "Julius Farron," the Angel offered as Issei took his hand. "Lord Uriel's Nine. I've heard a bit about you."

Issei offered him a grin. "Good to meet you. Let's see, Nero, Claudia, Caesar and Julius." He chuckled. "Noticing a theme here."

"We also have Helena, Maria, Marcus and others, if you're curious," Julius said, returning the grin. "All lethally capable former exorcists, of course. Now then, I think my King's waiting for us."

Gabriel let a small smirk form on her features as Julius led her Saint away.

* * *

"I have come as requested, Lord Uriel," Issei said as he bowed.

Julius had let him into private laboratory of Uriel, wished him well and shut the door. With that, he and the mad scientist that was the King of Diamonds were left alone together.

"Thank you, Issei. You may rise, but please step away from the door."

Issei did so. Uriel walked over to the door and laid his hand on it. He murmured a few words.

Several seals appeared on the doorway, ones Issei had seen while working with Dulio during his initial stay in Heaven. They were locking and noise cancellation spells, as expected.

"Now then, Issei," Uriel said, stepping back and turning to face him. He held up a large, red crystal, much larger than the one Issei had been given to wield Ascalon. "Step closer to me. I won't bite."

Issei did as instructed. Uriel laid his left hand on his shoulder.

"This will hurt a bit, Issei, I won't lie. My own Saints have mentioned that to me."

"What volume level were they using?"

"Well... one was screaming."

"Oh dear. Well, let's get this over with."

Uriel nodded and pressed the crystal against the brunette's chest; it was absorbed a moment later.

Slowly, Issei began to feel a burning sensation course through him – painful, though not excruciating and certainly possible for him to ignore with little more than a few twitches.

For several minutes, the burning continued, reaching a fever point before dying down. Issei did not cry out once.

Uriel's eyebrows rose as he removed his hand. "Is it done?"

"Well, the pain's gone, if that's what you mean, sir."

Issei couldn't explain how it felt. It was though he had had something replaced that he hadn't even realized was missing, but replaced with something much, much better than the original.

"Hmm... you're made of sterner stuff than I expected. Try summoning some flames."

Issei's face twisted into a smirk. "As you command, Lord Uriel."

A moment later, the entire laboratory was completely covered in flames.

"Issei! This is not what I meant! Douse those flames before you lose control and burn something!"

"As you command."

The fire vanished, nothing in the office having so much as a black mark on it.

Uriel turned and looked at Issei with an annoyed expression on his face. "You are learning the wrong lessons from your King."

"Sir, my King has never personally instructed me."

Uriel snorted despite himself, and Issei could see amusement hidden beneath his stern face. Then, his face became serious once more.

"Now then, Issei, I owe you my apologies. While you were unconscious when I ripped your magical reserves out, I-"

"Took a piece of the Boosted Gear, I know."

Uriel's eyes went wide for a moment, before he nodded in obvious understanding. "Ddraig, I assume?"

"He told me the first night after it happened, sir. I just haven't had the chance to talk to you alone. What are you planning to do with it, sir? Create copies of the Boosted Gear?"

Uriel shook his head. "No, Issei Hyoudou. Something much more drastic."

"Which is, sir?"

"Before I tell you that, Issei, I think I should make the Seraph's next request plain to you." With that, Uriel walked over to behind his desk, grabbed at something and pulled it out.

Issei's eyes went wide when he realized it was the Excalibur Destruction.

The brunette had never seen the blade up close except in pictures. It was an odd duck among swords, certainly. It was two-handed, with an ax-like guard and a massive blade that ended in three points. It appeared quite impractical to the untrained eye, but both of the Angels in the room knew much better. Both had seen the damage this sword could do.

"I'm sure I needn't explain this sword to you, Issei Hyoudou."

"What do you have it here for, sir?"

"I was getting to that. Simply put..." Uriel let out a long, slow breath. "...simply put, Michael and I want you to keep this blade safe. Though before you do that, I'll need to give you something else. Put your hand out, palm face-up."

After Issei did so, Uriel reached into his robes and extracted another item. Fist clenched around it, obstructing Issei's view of it, he placed into the brunette's palm. Then his fingers released the item, and Issei blinked several times in surprise.

In his hand sat one of the church's blue-white crystals – the ones designed to allow a person to wield Excalibur's fragments.

As Issei looked up at Uriel, the Seraph nodded. "We don't know if it'll be necessary, but Michael and I see no reason to take the chance when we have a number of crystals to spare."

"So you want me to absorb this?" Issei asked.

"Of course. I wouldn't have given it to you otherwise."

"This works the same way as Ascalon's crystal?"

"Yes."

"Thank you, Lord Uriel." With that, Issei folded his palms underneath the crystal and pressed it against his chest.

Almost instantly, it absorbed into his flesh, and a stinging sensation began pricking at his chest.

One second. Two. Three.

The feeling vanished.

"Hurt a lot less than the first crystal," Issei said.

"As I'd expect," Uriel said. "The Excalibur crystals are far more refined than the one created for Ascalon."

"Yeah, Lord Michael mentioned that, I think." Issei bit his lip. "Will this conflict at all with the crystal I already had?"

"Looking it over," Uriel said, "I'd consider the odds astronomically unlikely. No, it's likely to help with Ascalon, if anything. The crystal doesn't just contain the genetic key for Excalibur, after all – there's a major dose of the light element as well. The more light element in your blood, the more effective a wielder you are."

"Is there a quantity at which this light element becomes dangerous?"

"If there is, it's one even the born Angels of Heaven haven't reached. We've checked our own blood. The amount of light element in any of them is far higher than the highest recorded in a human, and you're not human any longer, Issei."

"So the born Angels of Heaven are all natural-born Holy Sword wielders?"

"Indeed, and they're extremely compatible with any of the ones created in Heaven's name." He held out the Excalibur Destruction to the Jack of Hearts. "Now then, Issei..."

Issei took the enormous blade from the Seraph and was unsurprised to find it was quite heavy, almost as much so as Durandal. Unlike the gold-trimmed broadsword wielded by the Ten of Hearts, however, the Destruction did not resist him, did not take issue with his hand on its hilt.

"You wanted me to hide this, sir?"

"Indeed... but probably not in the way you intended. I intend for you to keep this on your person."

"I don't understand, Lord Uriel."

"I don't intend for you to place this in a scabbard. Instead... I want to see if you can fuse it with your gauntlet."

Issei's eyes flared open with disbelief. "Why?"

"Because this way, no others may reach it, and few to none would suspect that we have tried such an audacious move. You hold in your hand the most dangerous fragment of Excalibur after Ruler, Issei."

"That's the one that allows a person to take control of anything they want, right? The strongest?"

Uriel nodded. "Though there are _some_ limits. You would not be able to take control of a number of Gods, the Heavenly Dragons or the like."

"And the Church was careless enough to let that thing get lost," Issei said, deadpan.

Uriel shrugged. "What little information we have indicates the word would be "stolen", but it was careless of them, yes. What of it? It cannot be undone by your hand or mine. Now, Issei, as I instructed, fuse the Destruction with the Boosted Gear."

Issei extended his left arm, and a moment later, the Boosted Gear's trademark gauntlet formed across his left hand. He looked down at the gem set just above the back of the hand. "Ddraig, is that even possible? Fusing a sword to this thing?"

 **"If that is your will, it can be done. It will not be pleasant the first time, however."**

"Pain doesn't mean a whole lot these days."

 **"Then place the sword over the gauntlet."**

Issei did as instructed.

 **"Issei Hyoudou, are you ready?"**

"Ready as I'll ever be."

 **"Then focus your will upon what you wish to do."**

Looking down at the sword held above the gauntlet, Issei did just that. His will and thoughts all focused on the two items he tried to combine. Slowly but surely, he watched the Excalibur Destruction begin to descend into the Sacred Gear, the guard vanishing into the gem.

The pain grew worse with every passing second.

* * *

"So Lucas has been cast down. Unfortunate, but it was the expectation."

"That would be so, my Lady."

In a hidden corner of Second Heaven, in a certain cell, a certain group of Angels discussed betrayal.

"You used Lucas to test the Dragon Saint's strength, didn't you?" one of the assembled asked.

"Indeed," Valkost said. "Though as you might expect, that wasn't the only reason. I wasn't sure that I could trust Lucas to take the swift action we needed, and it seems I was right to think that. Lucas was hesitant. If he hadn't been, he could have killed Issei Hyoudou instantly."

"Do you intend to hold up your end of the bargain to him?"

"Of course. Hesitant he might be, but I did make a deal with him. And I _always_ honor my deals." The blonde-haired Angel smiled, an expression that made her appear a predator sizing up her next meal. "But I'm beginning to rethink this plan. Perhaps killing Issei Hyoudou won't be necessary."

"If I may?" one of the Angels asked. "Why are you so obsessed with this one in particular? Are there not others that need to be dealt with?"

"Indeed there are," Valkost said, "but the Dragon Saint in particular has a few particular chinks in his armor – for one, he cannot employ Balance Breaker freely, and the Boosted Gear won't let him equal us otherwise. Second, he still retains connection to the world below. He holds immense potential, but he's yet to capitalize on it and bears weaknesses. I intend to use these things against him."

"Oh, Valkost, you are _cruel_."

"I like to think not," she countered. "I simply hold our father's ideal in high regard, unlike Michael,, and also unlike him, possess the backbone to act on it. Once properly modified, I have no problem treating Issei Hyoudou well – by the time we've finished, he'll be indistinguishable from a lifelong believer. I may even add him to my own deck once I begin taking Saints."

"So that's Ewald Cristaldi for your Ace, the Dragon Saint as your Jack..."

"Indeed..." Valkost said, her eyes warm with fondness. "Ewald always was a wonderful student. The only one who truly internalized that Devils are the enemy and actually had the skill to back up his words. I'm sure he'd be honored to join us."

No one dared contradict her before she turned to one of the Angels.

"Dremmalech, I need you to fetch a piece of information from Fifth Heaven's systems..."

* * *

As the sword fused with his gauntlet, time began to stretch for Issei Hyoudou until he honestly couldn't tell how long it had been since it started. He was too focused on finishing the process and not screaming from pain to care.

He refused and refused to cry out, no matter how bad the pain grew. And it grew agonizing.

The Jack's body became drenched in sweat. Issei bit at his tongue and lips so hard that they bled. At some point, he supposed he dropped to his knees, though he couldn't say that he recalled doing it even though Uriel apparently called out to him.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, the pain ceased and Issei was left sprawling on the ground.

"Oof..."

"Issei!" Uriel exclaimed. "Are you all right?"

"Fine..." Issei said as he pushed himself upwards and shakily stood back up. "I'm fine, Lord Uriel... just a little shaken up." He wiped at his lips and his fingers came away bloody. "Though... some tissues would be nice if you have any to spare, sir. Or something to stop bleeding."

"Hold still," Uriel said, reaching for him with one hand. One finger touched the brunette's lip, and Issei could feel the wound his teeth had created seal up as Uriel pulled back. "A simple healing spell."

"I don't have much skill with those. My apologies, sir."

Uriel shrugged. "Anyway, is it working well for you?"

Only then did Issei look down at the gauntlet. From it, the blade of Excalibur Destruction protruded, the guard having been hidden in the depths of the Sacred Gear. Issei flexed the fingers of the gauntlet. "Well, it feels a little heavier than before, but not by much. Could I use the Excalibur Destruction's power while it's in the gauntlet, Ddraig?"

 **"Of course. As a bonus, Destruction is the simplest Excalibur to use, despite being one of the most powerful."**

"I would, however, ask that you avoid doing that if at all possible," Uriel said. "If there's no other option and you _must_ use it to defend yourself or others, then do what you must do. Exhaust all other options first, however. That sword is intended to be hidden with you for now."

"I understand," Issei said. "But... uh, Ddraig? Can you get the Destruction _out_ of the Boosted Gear? I mean, I think the church would like to have this thing _back_ once this whole mess with our resident traitors is sorted out."

 **"It'll go out the same way it came in – on your will and command. Now that you've gotten one sword in, putting another in will be easy. Hiding or drawing it works the same way."**

"Whether we'll let you keep the Destruction is a question for the future, Issei," Uriel said. "Thank you for your help with this."

"You're welcome, Lord Uriel," Issei said. "Now then, that other bit of information you promised me? What you're going to do with that bit of the Boosted Gear you took?"

Uriel took one breath. Two. His arms stretched out in front of him, knuckles cracking as he did so. "It's not what _I_ plan to do with it, Issei Hyoudou. It's what _Michael_ plans to do."

"What's that, then?"

Uriel exhaled once.

"Michael intends to reset the system, Issei."

* * *

 _And cut._


	63. The Dragon Wakes

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

"Reset the system?" Issei asked.

Uriel nodded. "Before I go forwards, Issei, allow me to elaborate a small bit. Heaven's system is separated into several distinct "sections", as it were. These sections are uncoupled from one another, and so we can isolate the section where whatever is allowing these traitors to act so freely is located." He tapped his chin with a finger, brow furrowing. "How can I explain this in a way that makes sense...?" The Seraph went quiet for a moment, before nodding. "Think of each of the individual sections as a computer. The system is vastly older than the word or idea as it's understood by humans, but it's the same concept. One of those sections handles issues related to sin – and that's where we think the error is. Michael and I both agree, however, that we simply do not have time to sift through, pick at it and uncover exactly what's causing this issue, whether it's a glitch, an error or some sort of loophole. We don't know what their next move will be, and time is of the essence before they pull their next stunt. You barely survived their last attack, Issei, and Lucas was evidently disposable."

Issei's eyes studied the floor, but he couldn't disagree.

"As a result, Michael and I are hoping that resetting this section of the system will clear the problem. It might result in the traitors falling instantly and it might not. It all depends on how the system behaves. If the error is cleared, however, then the next time the traitors attempt any action against Heaven, then they will fall."

"I'm following so far," Issei said, "but what did you need a piece of the Boosted Gear for?"

"An insurance policy," Uriel said. "It requires an enormous amount of power – not electrical power, mind you – to activate even one section of the system, to the point that it took all of the Seraphs to _barely_ reactivate the entire thing. Michael and I have calculated that with his full power, he should just be able to reset this section. Tinkering with the fragment of the Boosted Gear, however, has given him the ability to temporarily double his power for a very short period, which should put his pool well over the required amount."

Issei's eyebrow raised. "Lord Uriel, I mean no disrespect, but... tricking me like that wasn't necessary. If you'd just told me what you needed the piece of the Boosted Gear for, I'd have given it to you."

"My apologies then, Issei. My actions were simply the result of placing issues on a list of importance. Every second I didn't have that piece in my hand was a second lost. I apologize once more, and I'll return the fragment as soon as I've finished with it if at all possible. If not, I'll find some other way to make it up to you."

"Unnecessary, Lord Uriel," Issei said. "You _did_ massively expand my reserves of magic, after all. Saved me a lot of work on that front. Thank you for that, by the by."

"You're welcome. I shouldn't need to tell you to keep what I've told you quiet."

"Naturally, Lord Uriel. Do the other Seraphs even know?"

"No. Only Michael, you and myself. We can't risk this information leaking out."

"I understand, sir. When will the reset of the system happen?"

"Rather soon – several hours at a stretch. I've nearly finished the modifications to the fragment. I would probably have been done sooner, but Gabriel and Michael both insisted I finish up with your magical reserves immediately in case you're attacked again. Perfectly understandable."

"I see..." Issei said. Personally, Issei thought that it would have been a far better use of Uriel's time to finish up this system reset. Heaven as a whole mattered more than he did. But Issei as he currently stood wasn't the type to mouth off to a Seraph. "Is there anything else, sir?"

"You may want to hide your newest addition to the Boosted Gear," Uriel said, pointing at the gauntlet on Issei's hand. "That's another secret, is it not?"

"Ddraig? This another "according to your will" thing?" Issei asked.

 **"I suppose a slow learner is better than one that never learns at all. Yeah, that's how it works."**

Sure enough, the three-pronged blade vanished into his Sacred Gear completely as soon as Issei commanded it to.

"Now then, Issei," Uriel said as he stepped over to the door, the symbols on it falling away as he laid his hand on it and began murmuring. "Let's go speak with your King a moment, shall we?"

* * *

Gabriel was standing exactly where she had been when Issei had departed. She was even in the exact same pose – her arms were still folded and her posture was rigid as a slab of limestone.

"Well? What took so long, Uriel?" Gabriel demanded. "I have spoken with Claudia Messalina in the last two days, and she tells me that the returning process requires far less time than the two of you took."

"Gabriel, calm yourself," the King of Diamonds said. "I spoke with Issei and asked him to safeguard some information. It's nothing you need worry about."

"So you insist upon throwing yet more burdens onto my Saint? I disagree – that is _absolutely_ something I must worry about. What is this information, then?"

"That will be revealed later, within a day. The information is quite sensitive, and if I reveal it now, there is a possibility, however unlikely, that it may reach the ears of those it's meant to be kept from."

Gabriel ground her teeth. "I suppose that that's your way of saying "I will not tell you, so stop asking", then?"

"You know me quite well, Gabriel," Uriel said, a wry grin on his face.

"You are my brother and we are both millennia old. It would be rather odd if I didn't." She nodded to Issei. "Now then, Issei, since I'll get nothing by speaking to Uriel and he's likely already sworn you to secrecy, I shall add some information of my own. You're free to leave for the evening, but the Seraphs ask that you remain on high alert. If anything out of the ordinary happens in Kuoh, we need to know immediately, no matter how small it is. Minor details have tripped up numerous criminals before."

"I understand, Lady Gabriel. Have a wonderful evening."

"Thank you, Issei. I wish the same for you as well."

Issei vanished into a cross.

* * *

When Issei had gone, Gabriel turned back to Uriel, eyes glaring through him. "Why do you suddenly distrust me so much, Uriel? I understand my own error with Ascalon, and have freely admitted to it."

Uriel sighed. "Gabriel, I have already told you. I _will_ tell you everything – later."

"Why can you not tell me now?" Gabriel asked. "Must I piece this together the way I pieced together that you have given Issei the Excalibur Destruction?"

Her brother's eyes widened. "How did you-"

"I am not a fool, Uriel, much as my recent actions would claim otherwise. I spoke with a Vatican representative, and they confirmed that it had not been returned to them. After, I spoke with Michael and learned it was stored in Zebel's armory. I checked just before I brought Issei here, and the sword had disappeared without any fanfare. And now you take an enormously long time to perform a procedure that your own Saints tell me should take only a few moments. There comes a point where coincidence fails to be coincidence any longer – the coincidences begin to form trends with clear end points. I can even guess where you have hidden the blade. I spoke with Azazel earlier through video earlier. A somewhat tight set of robes was all it took to get him talking, and he confirmed that a blade can be stored inside the Boosted Gear."

Gabriel shivered; she _hated_ playing on that, but she couldn't think of another way to rapidly squeeze information out of the Governor-General. She'd always known he had lusted after her even whilst he was an Angel, but she never thought she'd have to exploit it herself.

Uriel's jaw dropped at Gabriel's near-effortless deduction. "I... I see. You are correct on all counts..."

"So why can you not tell me what it is you have planned?"

"Because I cannot risk it getting out," Uriel said. "I know that I am not among the traitors, Michael is not, and Issei is not. It's also unlikely that your deck is. I cannot be entirely sure of anyone else, not even my own Saints. Not even you, Gabriel."

"I love my Saints dearly, and I love Michael just as much." The pain was evident in her voice, and a tear had collected in her eye. "These traitors have left us distrustful of even one another..."

"Exactly so, Gabriel. If you had told me two weeks ago that Lucas Truman would try to use Excalibur Destruction to murder another Saint in cold blood, I would have laughed at you. Yet here we are."

"I shan't keep you, then," Gabriel said. Her voice was not kind; on the contrary, it was filled with a new anger, one Uriel hadn't heard from her since the death of their father. "Do whatever it is you will."

Gabriel turned and stormed out.

* * *

Issei had arrived home to a fairly quiet house, but that was to be expected. His clock claimed it was past one o'clock in the morning. His parents had certainly long since retired to their bed. As Issei stripped out of the casual robes he'd been wearing, he noted that he ought to have gone to First Heaven and retrieved his uniform first.

Then he remembered what had become of it. The brunette promptly gave a quick shake of his head and made a mental note to himself to take his robes back to Heaven the next day, changed into a nightshirt and threw himself under the covers. Even despite his long nap, he found sleep came quickly.

* * *

"So you have returned Issei's magical reserves to him?"

"Indeed I have, and he decided to set this whole room ablaze as soon as he had them back."

It was several hours after his discussion with Gabriel that Michael had come to Uriel to discuss the final stages of their plan.

"Did he indeed?" Michael asked, a concerned look on his face. "Was anything damaged?"

"No," Uriel said. "He maintains excellent control over those flames of his, at least."

"Oh... I apologize, then, Uriel. I believe that _I_ may have inspired that little joke of his..."

When Michael laid out exactly what he'd done to scare Issei stiff before beginning to teach him fire-based magics, Uriel couldn't keep a snicker from coming out.

"So it's not Gabriel he learned it from. I've been betrayed, Michael!"

The Archangel's smile vanished, and he shook his head. "If we may return to the topic at hand? Are you certain that the fragment is functional and will cause no harm to the system?"

"I'm as certain as I can possibly be, Michael," Uriel said, a sigh escaping him. "I can't and won't make promises. A quarter of an hour to do this reset, then?"

"Roughly, assuming my calculations are correct. I also cannot and will not make promises. We're wasting time, are we not?"

"I suppose we are. I have the fragment ready, so you ought to get started."

Michael nodded. His posture was relaxed, but the nervousness was painfully evident to Uriel. He could read his brothers and sisters like open books, and Michael's eyes were filled with worry... more than usual, that is. The questions were as numerous as the feathers in the Archangel's wings.

 _What if I don't have enough power?_

 _What if the fragment is destroyed?_

 _What if the fragment damages the system?_

 _What if something else breaks from the reset?_

Most importantly, however...

 _What if it doesn't work?_

Neither Seraph had wanted to discuss that possibility. The Seraphs certainly weren't fools, but Uriel and Michael hadn't been able to come up with any other ideas as to how this situation might be dealt with. This entire plan had obvious imperfections, but it was all they had. If it failed, there weren't any other options except to cut Issei loose from the system for the foreseeable future, root through the entire system inch by inch and hope the traitors couldn't take more violent action in the meantime.

Neither of the two Seraphs voiced these thoughts. Instead, Michael nodded. "Thank you, Uriel. We must hope for the best... it is the only option left to us."

With that, Michael vanished into a golden cross.

* * *

It was just as Michael was arriving at the system that Issei was waking up.

It was no major surprise to Issei that he'd woken up. He'd only been asleep around three hours, but with his sleeping schedule as screwed up as it was, he felt completely recharged and refreshed.

As he stood from his bed, room still dark, he noticed the first oddity.

 _Why are the hallway lights on?_

Had they been on when he had fallen asleep? Issei couldn't remember for sure.

He shook his head and turned his own room lights on. Today would be the last day of the semester before his summer break. Issei grinned; he was quite looking forward to getting out of school for a while, even if he was fairly certain his entire break would be spent working with Heaven in some capacity.

After dressing, he stepped into the hall – and once more was confronted by an oddity.

He couldn't hear his father snoring.

As far back as Issei could remember, his father had _always_ snored. His mother had always claimed that it helped her sleep... somehow, and Issei had begun to take the sound for granted. Now, however, there was no trace or echo of it.

Concerned, Issei took a look down the hall, and saw light coming from _beneath_ his parent's door. In two steps, he stood before it and pushed it open less than half a heartbeat after that. What he saw there set off every alarm bell in Issei's head.

The sheets and blankets were haphazardly tossed about, as though the people within had left in quite a hurry. The light was still on, and Issei knew that his mother would _never_ have allowed the master bedroom to look like this. She _always_ kept the bed made tight and kept the lights off if no one was inside.

 _Something's happened... oh God..._

Issei turned to leave, to go check the rest of the house before going straight to Heaven to tell of what he'd found. His body had made it about one-hundred and forty-five degrees through the spin before his brain registered something else. He turned back.

On the bed, Issei could see a small, black cylindrical object.

Issei knew he should probably leave it alone, but he couldn't overcome curiosity, and took a few steps towards it in order to examine it more closely. He never held any intentions of touching it, certainly not of picking it up and carrying it around. But that never mattered.

Issei was within three feet of the bed when a loud _beep_ suddenly erupted from the object.

Issei's eyes went wide at what happened next.

The device, lacking any apparent means of propulsion, flew upwards from the bed and moved to float above his head. Before the Jack could react, the device began to spin rapidly. From the device, a thin, purple-white mist spewed forth, and within seconds, Issei fell to his knees in a coughing fit.

His knees, however, did not hit the wood floor of his house.

"Well, finally!"

The brunette had just enough time to realize that his knees had struck stone before an enormously powerful set of arms had wrenched his hands behind his back, a boot slamming into his spine and shoving him to the ground. Issei did not cry out, but he could feel the skin tear off of his face and fresh blood begin to flow from the wound.

Instinctively, Issei attempted to set his attacker ablaze, but all he received in reply was a feminine chuckle.

"A beautiful flame, boy, but easily snuffed."

Issei could only imagine this meant that his magically-created flames were being extinguished as fast as he could make them. He couldn't see the person who had pinned him and didn't recognize the voice, either, so this person's physical capabilities were a complete unknown to him.

The next instinct took over almost as quickly, the crimson and gold gauntlet forming across his arm.

 **"BOOST!"**

"Silly child," the unknown woman said again. "You would remain weaker than me even if you multiplied your power a hundred times."

Issei could believe _that_ at least.

"Now then," the woman restraining him said, her tone suddenly quite friendly and polite, "please stop wriggling and trying to fight me. You won't be getting away no matter what happens and our leader wishes to speak _without_ having to repeat herself."

To his shame, Issei obeyed, cursing himself for not having access to his Balance Breaker. He didn't know if it would have helped, but it certainly couldn't have _hurt_ in this situation. Once he had stopped writhing, he was at least permitted to sit on his knees and look around, though the grip that held him did not weaken.

He was not in his house any more. In fact, there was no sign of anything Issei recognized as far as his admittedly-limited vision could see. Instead, he saw that he was in what appeared to be a large courtyard. In front of him, he saw an enormous building that appeared to be a cross between a church and a courthouse. It was similar to one he'd seen before-

 _That building's from the Vatican!_

Despite having only been once, Issei remembered the distinctive architecture of Vatican City quite well, and this place was an exact replica of one of the courtyards. Above them, the sky hung black and starless, and it took about two seconds for Issei to realize that this wasn't the Vatican.

 _Some kind of artificial dimension?_

Dotting the area, the brunette could see a mix of figures that he knew must have been some of Heaven's traitors. Some stood behind pillars, some sat on the steps leading into the buildings, and still others stood in the open, empty space of the stone-laden expanse between them. One of the figures, standing approximately twenty yards away, caught his eye as he noticed the empty left sleeve of his coat and the figure glaring hatefully at him.

 _Lucas...?_

"Greetings, Issei Hyoudou," came a new female voice, this one from up the building's steps. Issei's head turned back to the figure, standing at the very top of the staircase.

The woman who spoke was... well, to put it bluntly, appearance-wise, she was an absolute knockout, rivaling Gabriel herself. Her lengthy blonde hair was thicker and longer than even Rias Gremory's, extending all the way down to her knees. Her face was flawless and mildly heart-shaped, giving her a friendly and kind appearance that was amplified by the light of the halo above her head. Her ivory form-fitting robe accentuated a body that could have been sculpted by Aphrodite, her hands covered by long, white gloves that hugged her arms until it disappeared into the depths of her clothing, whose sleeves' grip ended just below her elbows. From her back extended ten snow-white feathered wings.

She should have been the epitome of beauty and sensuality. Yet her smile negated all of that.

When her smile formed, she went from appearing kind and friendly to having the appearance of a hungry predator, her green eyes now appearing the color of the stereotypical poison as they sized up her next meal. And in her hand...

"Ascalon..." Issei hissed.

For indeed, in her hand was the distinct blade of Saint George's sword, the one that Ddraig had always warned him to not ever cut himself with.

Issei Hyoudou wasn't, despite all evidence to the contrary, an idiot. He knew that he'd likely just been tricked into walking into his own execution.

"I am Valkost," the female Angel said as she slowly descended the steps. "My kindest greetings to you, and my apologies for our rather... rough handling of you. To be fair, though, you bring it on yourself by not complying."

"Spare me the rhetoric, you sack of shit," Issei snarled. "If you're gonna kill me, get on with it."

"Kill you?" Valkost asked, touching her free hand to her lips. "Oh goodness, I was dearly hoping we could avoid that. It would be such a waste. Though I do agree with the Queen of Gabriel's deck – you must cease the vulgarity. It's quite unbecoming of an Angel."

"I'd say it's pretty unbecoming of an Angel to stab Heaven in the back and try to kill another Angel."

Valkost let out a laugh that sounded surprisingly lighthearted as her feet came to step off of the last stair. "Oh, darling," she cooed as she approached, "don't speak of yourself in such a way. You're hardly even an Angel. Though..." She stepped close now, fingers sliding under Issei's chin and pulling his head upwards to stare into her eyes. "I think that can be rectified with a few alterations to you." She shook her head in a mock-annoyed way. "Dear Gabriel, such a little fool. I told her she should just modify your mind until you were as faithful as any believer, but she was too horrified by the prospect to even consider it."

"If you're not here to kill me, then what the hell do you want?"

"Oh, that wasn't obvious?" Valkost asked, her thumb caressing his cheek as she knelt down to look at him on the same level. The predatory smile came out again.

"I want _you_... to join us."

" _Never_ ," Issei replied instantly, without even considering the option.

"Oh, you use that word, Issei Hyoudou, and yet you're only – what, seventeen? I think you ought to choose your words more carefully. You have no idea just how long "never" is, especially to a creature that will live as long as you will."

"I know that I'll never join you. You've tried to kill me and you've betrayed Heaven."

"I'll concede your first point. We have tried to kill you. Yet the Fallen Angels tried to do the same thing, for a similar reason, and were far more successful – and yet you have forgiven them."

"Raynare wasn't _supposed_ to kill me. She was sent to check to see if I was a threat and make sure I _stayed_ a non-issue."

"And you believe that?" Valkost asked, giggling. "Oh dear me, Issei Hyoudou, you are so very naive. You think Azazel would hesitate to butcher someone he thought might be a threat?"

"I believe him over you every day of the week," Issei spat. "And even if he had, you betrayed us."

"Did I?" Valkost asked. "Have I betrayed the words of my father, the basis for Heaven itself? He taught that Devils were sinful, evil beings that had to be eradicated, a view I continue to uphold. _Michael_ is the one who has betrayed our father's memory. He seeks to make _peace_ with the Devils and Fallen Angels! A poor joke in worse taste, in my opinion. We _should_ be annihilating the Devils and guiding our Fallen brethren back to Heaven's grace, and yet I am forced to sit and listen to the Seraphs preach about how we must forgive and make peace with our enemies."

"Because Heaven would fall if we didn't, don't you _get_ that?"

"And the continued existence of Devils threatens Heaven further, as they grow and expand at a rapid rate. And yet Michael refuses to expand the Brave Saint system with all haste as he should."

Issei didn't have an immediate counter to that, as he'd often wondered about that question himself. Why _weren't_ most ten-winged Angels allowed to make decks of their own? It made little sense to him, but he'd never voiced this opinion for the belief that there was something he didn't know about it.

"I'm still not going to help you, _ever_ ," Issei said, straightening his back as much as he could against the restraint of the Angel holding him. "I'd rather die." He narrowed his eyes. "Go on, gut me."

"Are you truly so resistant to the idea?" Valkost asked, her tone innocent. "Becoming a warrior in _my_ service would pay richly, I assure you. After alteration, I can certainly see a place for you among our ranks..."

"Can you just kill me rather than bore me any more?" Issei snapped. "The answer's no."

"I'd even be willing to marry you and that little Russian fairy," Valkost continued, ignoring the brunette. You and her do look so very cute together."

"The answer is _no_."

With that, Valkost's eyes fell, and she pulled back and stood up. A sigh escaped her. "You, boy... you're nothing more than a puppet of the Seraphs. All you know is whatever they tell you to think."

Issei said nothing.

"But better my puppet than theirs. I think I have something that may break your strings a moment," Valkost said, the predatory smile making yet another appearance. She turned to face the steps she had descended. "Come forth, my dear pets."

From behind one of the building's pillars, two figures strode out, their gaits stiff and unnatural, as though they were a pair of walking corpses. One step at a time, the figures made their way down the steps.

Issei realized who they were before they were off the second step.

"Mom! Dad!"

Valkost turned back to him and playfully tousled his hair, as though he were a small child she was praising instead of an Angel she was attempting to twist the arm of. Then, she reached up and indicated for Issei's parents to move closer.

Once they had reached the bottom of the steps, Issei was able to take a closer look at them. They were dressed in their sleeping clothes, each one disheveled and dirty. Their faces were expressionless, eyes staring vacantly at nothing.

"Oh, don't start asking the obvious question," Valkost said just as he began examining them. "Let me guess - "What have you done to them?!" will be the first words out of your mouth." She giggled. "You needn't worry. I've caused them no real harm as of yet. They're simply in a trance-like state."

"Explain," Issei spat.

"Well, 'trance' may not be the right term," Valkost admitted. "They're alive and completely conscious. They can still feel absolutely everything. The only thing that's different about them from their normal states is that they have no control over their bodies – those can only do as I command them to. And yes, that means they can feel pain. They can hear everything we're saying."

Issei could only stare at her, horrified at what this woman had done as she knelt down before him once more and took his chin in a gloved hand.

"Now, I see no need to tell you the end result of your continued obstinate refusal. That much will be obvious. And of course, I will ensure that it isn't fast. I will _happily_ drag it out, make the suffering last as long as possible, even give them the ability to scream in utter agony. And I'll make you listen to and watch _all of it_. And then? I wouldn't even give _you_ the release of death. I think you'd make a good toy..."

Issei smirked despite his own feelings. "Do any of that and you destroy your own plan. You can't take over Heaven once you fall."

At that, to Issei's utter shock, Valkost pulled forward and kissed Issei's forehead in a gesture with absolutely zero love or kindness behind it. "Oh, you're even more adorable than I thought! Thinking we hadn't planned around that! Oh no, no, no, my dear. I've been in contact with the wielder of Dimension Lost – surely you've heard of it? One of the top-tier Longinus? This dimension we're inside of right now is the fruit of that communication. No acts we commit here will count against us – we will remain Angels no matter what." She giggled. "I could force you to have sex with me and my wings wouldn't so much as flicker."

Issei stared at her, mouth slowly going agape in renewed horror. All the exits and outs he could think of had been covered, all the methods he might have used to defend himself negated.

"The choice is yours, Issei Hyoudou," Valkost said pleasantly. "Either you can join me and be mentally altered how I see fit willingly, or I can kill your parents, break your mind and then alter it how I see fit involuntarily. The end result is the same either way – the only difference is whether your parents live or die."

"You'll kill them anyway," Issei said, desperately trying to stall for time so he could think of a way out.

"Oh good heavens, no!" Valkost said, appearing almost hurt. "If you join me willingly, I give you my word that neither I nor anyone in my forces won't harm a hair on their little heads. Their memories of tonight will be wiped, of course – I can't leave any loose ends – but I would certainly never seek to harm them again. They would be under Heaven's protection and I would even make sure they made it to Heaven when they died. If you don't believe me, believe that I've never told a lie – even those who have fallen from grace in service to my plan will be given their places back when it is complete."

Issei stared at her, completely helpless and hating himself for it. Ascalon, _his_ blade, was held in her hand, an unspoken threat that held him in place more than even the Angel binding his arms. It wasn't even his own life he feared for.

He stared into the glassy eyes of his parents, knowing they were terrified for their lives but helpless to do _anything_ to stop what was happening.

"Well then, Issei Hyoudou?" Valkost said, caressing his cheek. "What will it be?"

Issei was about to speak, about to try to delay her further, when he _felt_ the equivalent of a faint _pop_ pass through him.

That was when Valkost's hands left his mouth, instead clawing at her spread wings – the wings that were now flashing between black and white. A number of other figures spread throughout assumed similar poses, and even the Angel holding Issei did the same, allowing him the chance to stand just as Valkost's wings settled on a color.

That color being black.

Valkost gazed for a full three seconds at her wings, now those of a Fallen Angel, before she turned to Issei and screamed, "What have you _done_?!" Any shreds of feigned kindness or friendliness was gone now, and Issei could see the bottomless well of hatred that lay behind them.

Yet Issei still grinned as he realized what had happened.

"It worked... it really worked..." Issei said, giggling like a madman.

"What did?" Valkost hissed, stalking towards him and wrapping her fingers around his throat. " _What worked?!_ " she screeched.

"Lord Michael..." Issei gasped... "he... he reset this section of the system... with the help of _this_..." He looked down at the Boosted Gear and nodded.

Valkost glared through him and dropped him.

"Your plan's gone to shit," Issei said, laughing madly. "Go on, kill me. I don't care. You've failed completely."

"Kill you? Oh no, no, no," Valkost hissed. "You do not deserve the mercy of death. As I said... you either join me willingly or you become mine to use as I see fit." She pointed to the Fallen Angel who had been holding him. "Restrain him."

Issei was suddenly snatched up from behind, and this time slammed bodily against the ground. He felt at least two of his teeth break, and blood began pouring from his gums.

"Hold him upright and still," Valkost ordered. "And hold his eyes open. I want him to see this and remember it."

Issei was dragged upright, held in place with his arms bound – just in time to see Valkost stalk over to his parents, Ascalon in hand.

"And now... _they_ will pay for your actions."

As if in slow motion, Issei watched Valkost turn the blade until it was parallel with the ground. He might have screamed, he might not have; Issei was never able to say for sure.

Ever so slowly, she pulled it back a few inches, lining up the tip of the sword with his father's chest.

Even slower, she thrust it in.

The blade broke the skin's surface leisurely, blood steadily being forced out of the way and sent flying, staining Valkost's white ensemble a deep scarlet. Inch by inch, it penetrated deeper and deeper into the Hyoudou patriarch's flesh, ripping meat and organ and bone with equal ease.

Then, it expelled out the other side, and Valkost drew it back at the same slow pace.

Issei's father dropped to the ground, his lifeblood flowing out onto the stone.

Valkost approached Issei's mother next, taking extra care this time to skewer her through her most sensitive inner areas, trying to inflict the most amount of pain she possibly could.

Issei's mother fell.

Slowly, Valkost turned and looked at Issei, shaking with horror and face flecked with tears, before throwing the blade on the ground and reaching for him with gloved hands stained with blood.

"And what for you, then, you ask? I think it's only fitting that the night I become a Fallen Angel is the night I erase my purity." She indicated to the building behind her before speaking to the Fallen Angel holding him "Take him to the bed in there. Strap him down good and tight."

She looked down into his eyes, intending to send one last insult his way.

The words died in her throat when she saw the green glow in his eyes.

A moment later, she and the other Fallen Angels were blown backwards through the air.

* * *

 _And cut_.

 _ **More maniacal laughter**_


	64. Rampage

_I do not own Highschool DxD_.

* * *

Michael felt no triumph as this section of the system reactivated. The gem in his hand, a deep emerald green, had done its duty, but he wished he had not had to take these actions to begin with. He switched back to the entries for the Angels of Heaven – and as he did so, his stomach churned.

Eleven sets of wings had blackened – no, thirteen, nineteen, twenty-two -

The numbers of the newly Fallen finally stopped increasing at thirty-seven. Two among them were Brave Saints as Lucas had been.

Michael buried his face in his hands, suppressing tears. He'd seen more Angels fall than he cared to count. He'd seen the formation of the Fallen Angel faction firsthand, known every member of its count. Yet it still always hurt to know that an Angel had turned their back on their father's ways, and this was the largest cluster to fall at once – _ever_. Even the initial batch that was now the Grigori's leadership had fallen in smaller numbers than this.

He knew that the Heaven below had to be deep in confusion as over three dozen Angels had suddenly all fallen from grace at once. The archangel knew that it wouldn't be long before his subordinates looked to him for explanation and he would have to reveal everything. But for a few precious minutes, he would remain here with the system.

Michael felt the pressures of leadership quite acutely. He had to be God, a role he knew himself unsuited for, and had to take actions that left deep marks of shame and disgrace upon his conscience. He had had to unfairly exile anyone who might be a threat, even if they were a perfect believer otherwise. They had lost powerful warriors who often retaliated against the church and innocent children for having Sacred Gears that might affect the people's faith. Even with all of that, the system and Christianity were just barely holding together.

And despite all these things, he had had to put up a public front of confidence and faith in the system, even to his siblings.

Michael came to the Seventh Heaven quite often. Usually it was to work on the system to which he'd dedicated his very being. Occasionally, it was to cry.

After half a minute or so, he looked up at the system – and saw something alarming.

Issei Hyoudou's entry was flickering – back and forth, back and forth, faster and faster, and Michael thought that he was about to fall. His heart sank as he pictured Gabriel's face, already imagining the tears in her eyes and the pain it would cause her. She was fond of all her Saints, perhaps more so than any other among the Seraphim, and Issei was no exception. Or perhaps she was; she took even more concern dealing with her Jack than any of her other Saints, an action that implied one of two things.

Just as Michael was sure that Issei would fall, however, things grew _much_ stranger.

Issei's entry, for no apparent reason, froze. Not on black, not on white, it just suddenly stopped flickering halfway through a transition, leaving the entry the color of soot. When Michael tried to interact with it, it refused to respond.

Bewildered, Michael went and checked the Brave Saint system, and that was when he realized that this problem was much bigger than one system not functioning properly.

The Brave Saint system did not allow access, either, and Issei's entry was a confused, scratched-out number-and-letter combination without any rhyme or reason.

"What in Heaven's name...?" Michael murmured to himself as he vanished into a cross.

* * *

Valkost stared Issei Hyoudou down, her all-covering dress stained with human blood. She wanted to make him suffer, strip him of every last shred of his dignity, make the loss of his innocence as painful and agonizing as she possibly could.

Yet the incredible blasts of crimson aura exuding from him now held her and all other Fallen there at bay. The one that had been holding him had been vaporized outright – no small feat, given the victim's eight wings.

Before her no longer stood Issei Hyoudou. Now, the figure who stood there was covered in a dense, red dragon-like armor, set with green gems. Above his head, two crimson halos intersected, while from his back extended six draconic wings that were covered in crimson feathers. Surrounding the armored figure, dozens of orbs of white light floated in a random arrangement.

The traitor's eyes narrowed, and as she picked up the sword she had carelessly discarded before, she spoke.

"If this is meant to impress me, boy, it does not. If I need suppress your Sacred Gear before I have my fun with you, so be it."

The voice that answered her was not Issei Hyoudou. The voice was a deep baritone that Issei's throat would have been incapable of, and it did not so much as acknowledge her words.

 **"I, who shall awaken."**

Another voice, this one of a woman known to no one present, spoke. _"It's starting... the time has finally come..."_

 **"I am the Heavenly Dragon who stole the principle of Domination from** _ **God**_ **!"**

Valkost's eyes widened. As the figure had said those words, its body had begun to change – the armor warping and distorting into a much larger figure, one that appeared more broken and demented. The halos began to twist out of shape even as a third one appeared above his head, the helm itself breaking and stretching into an enormous maw.

 _"It has always been this way..."_ said another female voice.

 _"That is correct. Always and forever..."_ added another voice, this one male.

 **"I mock the infinite, and fret over the dream."**

Two more dragon-Angel wings tore loose from his back, these and the others beginning to form green gems within themselves.

 _"What the world desires..."_

 _"What the world rejects..."_

 **"I shall become the Red Dragon of Domination..."**

 _"...has always been power."_

 _"...has always been love."_

 _"No matter the occasion, you **always** choose the path to ruin!"_

 **"I shall drown you in the depths of crimson purgatory!** _ **Juggernaut Drive!"**_

Now easily twenty-five feet tall, the dragon with the wings of an Angel, the abomination, threw its head back and let out a hate-filled roar.

* * *

Vali Lucifer snapped upright.

He'd been deep in a sleep untroubled by dreams when he had, for no apparent reason, been awakened. Looking around the tent he was currently within, he found nothing that would have troubled his rest.

"Albion?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Did you...?"

 **"Focus inwards to the Sacred Gear, Vali. You'll find your answer there."**

Any sleepiness that had remained in the Lucifer descendant died at the urgency in Albion's words, and Vali crawled out of his sleeping bag. As he threw on clothes in a mechanistic, automated fashion, he obeyed the words of the White Dragon Emperor.

It took about three seconds to find what Albion was referring to.

There was a mass of anger, despair and sheer hatred swirling around the unconsciousness of the Sacred Gear. But it wasn't his.

"Albion, is this...?"

 **"I once told you that the Red and White Dragon Emperors are connected by more than just a shared destiny, did I not? What you're seeing is not yourself reflected. It is Issei Hyoudou – his power has changed immensely, and those emotions swirl around it. I needn't say what that change is."**

Vali blinked and immediately finished dressing as fast as possible.

 **"What are you planning to do, Vali?"**

"If Issei's entered _that_ state, time's of the essence to bring him back."

 **"You intend to save him?"**

"He spared me once. Why doesn't matter anymore, because I think he might have been right."

Albion asked what he meant by this, but Vali didn't answer. Instead, the silver-haired young man ran towards another one of the tents in the forest clearing.

"Arthur! Kuroka!"

"Yes, Vali?" came the dignified voice of the Pendragon heir, wielder of both Excalibur Ruler and Collbrande.

"Mmph..." answered a feminine voice that was obviously Kuroka's, still miffed by sleepiness.

"I need you two to dress as fast as you can. Arthur, bring both your swords and both of you bring communicators. We're going for a dimensional jump."

"For what?"

"It's about my rival..."

* * *

Valkost barely had time to throw up a shield to protect herself and her followers on the steps before the aura that blasted loose from the beast destroyed the building behind them. Even as she did so, the leader of the newly-Fallen began gathering holy aura around her stolen blade.

The creature's jaw split open, and Valkost instinctively raised the blade in front of her face as a massive laser flew forth from it. Just as the Fallen Angel had predicted, it ripped a hole in the barrier without any trouble and continued towards Valkost. Ascalon, however, had been put between them, and Valkost's skill with Holy swords made redirecting it easy.

In this bizarre form, Issei did not give her the satisfaction of a show of pain as his own laser hit him in the face, and Valkost realized her miscalculation immediately. When the laser struck Issei, it kicked up a cloud of dust as it ricocheted again into the ground. The dust rendered Issei's massive form invisible for a fraction of a moment.

That moment ended only because he came charging out of the dust cloud at blinding speed, far faster than one would ever believe that a creature of that size could move.

Valkost barely managed to dodge to the side, unable to even swing Ascalon in time to damage him as he went by.

Her subordinates on and near the steps weren't so fortunate. The small cluster didn't even get the chance to scream before the beast's claws had sliced their number into pieces.

"All of you, _fall back!_ " Valkost screamed. "Stay away from this thing or he'll tear you apart!"

As the Fallen Angels scurried away to hide from the battle, Valkost took flight and summoned a spear the size of a telephone pole and threw it at the beast that had since looked up towards her. As expected, it was obliterated by his laser, but it served its purpose, and the aberration that was Issei Hyoudou leaped into the air to confront her. He came directly forward, his fist and claw extended, and Valkost grinned. She raised, swung Ascalon down to meet his armor-

And was promptly knocked for a loop by a massive explosion.

 _What the hell?!_

She wasn't injured to any real degree – an explosion of that did little more than tear her dress and leave her ears ringing – but she was shocked nonetheless.

 _Is this... oh, those crafty bastards..._

Valkost was of more than sound mind, and she recognized Excalibur Destruction's aura instantly.

The beast flew towards her once more at an absurd speed, laser firing. This time, Valkost was ready, and slid around both the fist that came towards her, flicked Ascalon and dug deep into the armor, for which she was awarded a scream of pain.

It was then that she felt something snake around her, and she had just enough time to realize that the tail-like structure that extended from the back of the armor's neck had wrapped around her before she was sent hurtling into the stones below. While the maneuver did little damage, she was left trapped for a fraction of a moment. That short span of time was all Issei needed to land and slam an enormous clawed foot down on top of her.

Wriggling with the fluidity of a snake, Valkost was able to keep her hands on Ascalon and the sword above Issei's foot, concentrating holy aura around it as Issei's enormous, clawed fists came down with the force of freight trains.

Expertly, and despite the ensuing explosions, Valkost sank the charged-up Ascalon deep into Issei's right fist, drawing another roar of pain and a moment's delay. In the span of that delay, Valkost grinned and let the holy wave fly from the blade towards Issei's warped head. The wave struck true, tearing deep into the helm and granting her a wail of agony. Issei stumbled for a heartbeat, allowing Valkost to wriggle free.

She had heard of Juggernaut Drive's power, and it was certainly evident as she fought. In his normal state, Issei would have been dead ten times over, yet he was taking these hits without much difficulty. It was a war of attrition, however – once his life force ran out, that was it. Another problem gone.

The grin on Valkost's face vanished when a titanic pillar of fire erupted beneath her feet, scorching her beautiful hair and destroying much of her dress; while it caused her little harm, as had all his other attacks, it still worried her.

These worries were confirmed when the entire courtyard became enveloped in the fire, the flames burning everything in sight that they possibly could. While her subordinates were out of direct range, Valkost knew that the heat the flames produced would slowly roast her followers if something wasn't done about them. She slammed a hand into the ground.

"Extinguish."

Radiating from the area around her palm, the flames began to do just that, the fire vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared. She was forced to abandon this task, however, when she saw Issei's next tactic.

As she dodged this way and that, desperately trying to avoid the immense spears of light he had spawned from all sides, she finally allowed Issei a smidgen of respect.

 _Even in this state, he can still use his Angelic abilities effectively..._

Valkost was beginning to question if Issei really had lost his mind or not when she saw the direction of one of the light spears.

She took off, blasting towards the target of the spear's trajectory, managing to put up an incredibly thick barrier just feet from her subordinates. Paralyzed by fear and helplessness, none of them had moved, even as the spear hurtled towards them. Valkost supposed she couldn't blame them. She knew that of them, she was the only one who could face Issei Hyoudou in this state and have a chance.

The spear slammed headlong into the barrier, and for a moment Valkost believed she hadn't made the barrier thick enough; cracks appeared in it and the spear continued to push forwards for a few seconds. Valkost breathed a quiet sigh of relief when the spear ultimately fell apart before looking back to the attacker. And then her eyes went wide.

Issei Hyoudou was gone – the space he had been standing in completely empty. Her head swung back and forth, desperately trying to catch any sight of him. Seeing nothing, she looked up.

Far above their heads, the draconic Angel abomination hung in midair. Above his head was...

"MOVE!"

Only Valkost was able to avoid the immense meteor of fire that slammed into the rubble where her subordinates were – none of the other Fallen there escaped the blast. In one fell swoop, the remaining sixteen of those who had gathered were vaporized instantly.

Valkost could only stare in horror, finally experiencing the helplessness she had inflicted on Issei firsthand.

That feeling, however, was quickly replaced by anger, and Valkost flew up to meet the descending beast that had slain her comrades.

She met him with the sword of Saint George, ignoring the blasts his fists created and even the small gashes his claws made. At a speed most eyes would never be able to follow, dragon-angel and Fallen Angel clashed in midair.

It wasn't the most evenly-matched of contests, of course; Valkost's skill with a blade did much more damage than Issei's brute force. That wasn't to say that Issei didn't manage some injury of his own; by the time the two landed, Valkost's dress and gloves were shredded and stained with her own blood as well as his that of his parents. Even so, Issei's armor was in a much worse state, three of the wings having been slashed off, several fingers missing from the gauntlets, its tail severed and its jaw split in half.

Valkost smiled as she heard the creature's pained breaths. Even in his insanity, Issei Hyoudou's stamina wasn't anywhere close to infinite and he could still feel pain.

 _I'm going to win..._

She got no further than this thought before she felt an incredibly dainty pair of slices. They were tiny, but she screamed nonetheless. How could she not?

After all, her Achilles' tendons had just been severed by someone she couldn't even see.

As one might expect, Valkost fell to her knees, and wasn't able to reach the backs of her heels in time before Issei's unbelievable speed closed the gap between them.

His one working hand clasped around her for no more than a moment before it sent her flying into the remaining bits of rubble.

 _Bam, bam, bam_ she went, slamming through several pieces of debris before finally stopping via a violent collision with a pillar. For the first time that battle, Valkost experienced genuinely excruciating pain.

Her vision left swimming, for several seconds she could only _feel_ the enormous, several-ton block of solid stone that had fallen on top of her. It was all she could do to keep it from crushing her; moving it was certainly out of the question. All she could do now was watch... and wait.

Yet Issei Hyoudou did not charge.

Instead, a hideous squelching and ripping sound made itself known. It was the unmistakable sound of flesh being torn.

As Issei let out a scream in the voice this form twisted his own into, the chest of the armor literally tore open, revealing what was very distinctly a cannon.

 **"BOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOST-"**

For nearly thirty seconds this went on, the cannon slowly glowing brighter and brighter shades of red. It was only a few seconds before it stopped that Valkost realized what it was and just _how_ she was going to die.

"N-no... impossible... _my father sealed that attack...!_ "

 **"** _ **LONGINUS SMASHER!**_ **"**

The cannon, now glowing in an almost blinding fashion, released the aura. It tore towards Valkost, dying the whole black sky a crimson tint, so tightly packed and so full of power that it would be a wonder if _anything_ could survive it.

Valkost certainly didn't.

* * *

As Vali watched from the end of the battle from high in the air via the wings of his Sacred Gear, he shivered at the sight of the Longinus Smasher utterly obliterating the Fallen Angel.

 _There's that much power in that attack..._

The attack hadn't just killed Valkost instantly; it had utterly annihilated the surrounding area. The rubble was vaporized the moment the beam hit it, the buildings behind it had suffered the same fate and there was an enormous hole in the dimension itself.

And he might well have to face it head-on.

Vali didn't know whether to be terrified or excited.

"Excellent trick with Collbrande, Arthur, slicing her Achilles' tendons from afar like that," Vali said. "Now then, have you found anything in that building?"

"Indeed," replied Arthur through the communicator in his ear. "This entire building appears to be a communications array of some type. I'll see what I can find."

"And the noncombatants?" Vali asked.

"Kuroka is tending to them, but their injuries are quite serious. They'll need genuine medical care before too long, and it's no sure thing either way."

"I see," Vali said. "Get to work on that, then. I'll see what I can do about keeping our berserk friend company."

 **"Vanishing Dragon Balance Breaker."**

The white-and-blue armor forming over the half-Devil's body, he dove down to introduce himself again.

* * *

When Arthur first powered on the computer systems, he found himself rather confused. With everything written that was labeled written in Hebrew, a language Arthur would admit he had no knowledge of, he found himself clicking its icons at random. At the very least, the interface was simple enough to comprehend.

There were memos, forms and the like, but Arthur quickly got the impression that this dimension had been set up _very_ recently. Not one document in it was more than a day or two old.

Shaking his head, Arthur tried another icon... and was rewarded by what appeared to be a live feed. Several Angels, three female and one male, sat at a table, clearly in the middle of some sort of discussion. Three were varying shades of blonde, the fourth was a blue-haired girl.

When Arthur looked down, he noticed what was certainly a mute button, currently enabled, on-screen, which he quickly disabled. Their chatter about some topic or another filled his ears, but he paid no attention as he began, on a whim, turning on the other disabled icons.

After he clicked one in particular, one that seemed to show a pair of television screens, all four of their heads snapped to stare directly into the camera.

"What on earth...?" the blue-haired girl said, standing and forming a sword of light.

One of the blonde Angels, the oldest among them, stood next and did the same. "Who _are_ you? What is this?"

"You can see me, then?" Arthur asked.

"Yes," the oldest Angel replied, "and hear you as well. Now explain yourself."

"I have little time," Arthur said as he he felt the building rumble. "I am Arthur Pendragon, of the Vali Team. I have vital information for the Seraph known as Gabriel. I beg you, bring her here so that I may speak with her. Time is of the essence."

The male Angel bit his lip and nodded, before vanishing into a cross.

* * *

As Vali flew towards the beast that was and was not Issei Hyoudou, it leaped into the air to meet him. Vali swerved to the side, causing the creature's trajectory to be off-course, but it turned in mid-air and tried to fly at him again, its mouth laser firing for all it was worth. While Vali blocked this as easily as he had dodged this, he wasn't stupid enough to believe he could stand for long against Issei Hyoudou's Juggernaut Drive in only his Balance Breaker state.

Flying to near the edge of the dimension, Vali began the chant, avoiding the stronger but slower Issei in the process as he spoke.

"I, who shall awaken. I am the Heavenly Dragon who took the principle of Supremacy from God! I envy the infinite and pursue the dream! I shall become the White Dragon of Supremacy and lead you to the farthest limits of white paradise! _Juggernaut Drive!_ "

He could hear the voices, hear their anger and rage and despair. But he did his best to ignore them, despite knowing he couldn't fight them off forever.

In a burst of light, Vali's body changed.

He, like Issei, had become a gigantic beast two-and-a-half stories tall. Unlike, Issei, however, there was no confusion in his appearance. His white armor with blue gems was composed and dignified, brutal but elegant and decidedly draconic, in complete contrast to the savage appearance of Issei, who appeared to be a horrific mix of dragon and Angel, a crude mockery fused together out of sheer hate and hopelessness.

This time, Vali met Issei's twisted form head-on, meeting his fist. The resulting explosion didn't even bother him, despite the obvious Holy influence in it. His leg lanced upwards, striking Issei in the chest.

Ducking, weaving and dodging back and forth and employing his hand-to-hand combat skills to the fullest, Vali knew he could easily kill Issei even in his current state.

That wasn't Vali's aim, however, to the point that he didn't even dare use Divide against his rival. He had no idea how fast Issei's life force was being sucked down to fuel this state.

"Vali," Arthur suddenly said through his communicator, "I've gotten into contact with some of Heaven's Angels. They've agreed to bring Gabriel to me."

"Good," Vali said as he blocked another laser and explosive punch. "I'll hold Issei off."

 _Hurry, Arthur..._

* * *

Gabriel had felt the _pop_ of the system as much as any other Angel, but she hadn't expected the six-winged Angel she was speaking with to suddenly have their wings turn black. It had taken mere seconds, of course, to grab him and teleport into Second Heaven, a minute or so beyond that to lock him in a cell.

When she arrived in Zebel to question Uriel and Michael, however, she was instead greeted by none other than Michael's Joker.

"Lady Gabriel!" he exclaimed, grabbing her shoulders without even bothering to bow. "Lady Gabriel, I apologize, but we need to get back to the Hearts building _now._ Someone has come through on some kind of communicator, and he says that something bad's happened to Issei. We need to move, _now_!"

Gabriel nodded, grabbing Dulio's shoulders before warping them back to outside the Hearts building.

In seconds, they had torn in and down the hall, coming to a stop in the dining room to find a large screen hanging in midair. On it was an unfamiliar man, dressed in a suit.

"The Seraph known as Gabriel, then?" the man asked.

"Yes," she snapped. "What is this about?"

"There's little time to explain. Your Saint has undergone Juggernaut Drive."

Gabriel and Dulio each gasped, horrified, while the other three Saints looked at one another, confused.

"Where is he?" Gabriel demanded.

"I'm sending you the coordinates of the dimension we are in now," Arthur said, before speaking again.

When he had finished, Gabriel nodded and placed her hands in front of her, chanting words under her breath.

Before her, it appeared as though the fabric of reality had split open, drawing upwards in a curtain-like fashion. Beyond it, they could see a room with a number of computers.

"Dulio, come."

"I'm coming too," Mirana said. "I will not take no for an answer, my Lady."

"Then come along," Gabriel said. "We have no time to argue, my dear Ace."

They raced through the gap and it sealed behind them, leaving Asia and Xenovia crying after them. An instant later, the screen switched off.

* * *

When the four came through the gap, they found themselves right next to the man to which they had been speaking. He nodded as he drew his sword, but the sword itself distracted the rest from whatever he might have said.

"You wield _Collbrande_?" Gabriel demanded.

"Indeed I do, Gabriel," Arthur said, a small grin playing across his lips for a moment. "And no, I will not relinquish it to you under any circumstance."

"It doesn't matter," Mirana said. "Issei needs our help! Let's _go_!"

"My Ace is right," Gabriel said, nodding before drawing her own sword.

It was an odd design, that much was certain. A polished, mirror-smooth piece of white steel with a completely hollow center was not a typical design for a blade. Yet Arthur's eyebrows raised nonetheless.

"Then that must be the True Belisarda? The Seraph's sword that devours magic rather than simply cutting it?"

"Indeed it is. Now then..."

Arthur nodded.

* * *

They didn't make it five steps outside the building before they spotted Issei. How could they not, given that he was but a hundred feet away and the size of a house?

He tried to charge them and rip them apart, but before he'd closed half the distance, another enormous dragon-like creature, this one white and blue, put itself between them and delivered a solid punch to his jaw. The two began wrangling, the Angels and Arthur completely forgotten in the face of something else to kill.

"Issei!" Mirana screamed.

"Don't waste your breath, Mirana," Gabriel said. "He can't hear you in this state."

"Should I try some barriers? I might be able to restrain him," Mirana said.

Gabriel shook her head. "He'd blast through them without slowing down. In any other situation, I'd have forced you to remain behind."

"Then... then how do we change him back?" Mirana asked helplessly as she stared at the enormous red and white dragons currently trying to tear each other limb from limb, shaking the ground with every strike.

"We have to get through whatever is causing this berserk state," Dulio said. "I have a technique for situations like this, but... I'm honestly not sure if it'll work. It wasn't designed for those who've lost their minds."

"So there's nothing I can do to help you on the battlefield?" Mirana asked, shoulders drooping.

"Unfortunately, not really," Gabriel said. "My apologies, Mirana."

Mirana bit her lip, before she stepped backwards.

"Save Issei... _please_."

* * *

Issei's mind was drowning beneath the sheer despair and hatred he and the others felt.

He'd never known the others were here, but he could hear their voices so clearly now. _Rampage_ , they said. _Kill_. _Tear_. _Destroy_. _Hate. Hate. **Hate.**_

He could do that, at least. He could do _that_ right. God knew he couldn't do anything else.

As he swung his fist at this person that he hated, this white beast, what would have been his sane mind picked up on the presence of others.

The white creature made a noise, before it suddenly flew off and grew smaller.

He was about to chase after it when he saw the others – the three who had gathered to attack him. He couldn't see their faces and couldn't have cared less.

He hated them. They had to die, right now.

He tried to bolt towards them, only to find that his legs had gotten cold. He pulled himself out of this hard stuff that had suddenly encased his legs easily enough.

The problem was that it kept coming back.

The bright lights in front of his face above the figure's heads seemed familiar, but he hated the light, too. That had to be _annihilated_.

One of the figures was in front of him, now, and it wouldn't hold still long enough for him to slice it up.

He snarled as his legs became encased in the cold, hard stuff that refused to stop growing, steadily immobilizing him further and further.

A bright light suddenly came towards him, much brighter than the ones above the heads of the figures.

When it hit, he felt pain throughout his whole chest and was mildly aware of falling backwards. As soon as he hit the ground, the cold, hard stuff completely encased him, leaving Issei struggling.

Then another one of the figures closed the distance, and stuck a pointy thing into his chest... it started to glow, too.

He _hated_ all of it. Why couldn't they just _die_?

Staring upwards, he could see another figure – maybe it was the one from before, maybe not. He didn't care, he wanted them dead. He could see it raising its hands, forming a circle with its fingers.

Something shiny flew towards him, and when it reached him, it popped.

A fuzzy memory of something came back... something nostalgic...

 _You caught a big one!_ said a voice that sounded familiar. Was that...?

 _Let me show you this new game!_ came another, this one higher-pitched.

 _Dinner's ready! Your favorite, Issei!_ said a third, this one that of a woman.

The world came rushing back to Issei Hyoudou, the voice's hatred pushing back as he became aware of his surroundings.

Memories flashed through his mind – his childhood, his time spent with his parents and his fellow Saints, his first real kiss with Mirana, the sword duel with Xenovia, the last conversation he'd had with his parents.

He loved them.

He certainly didn't hate those figures around him... that person above him was Dulio, all ten of his wings spread wide! Pressing his eyes as far down as he could, he saw Gabriel, and there was Mirana further back. He didn't recognize the man in the suit, but he knew the white beast must have been Vali.

 _What are you doing?!_ The voices suddenly began screaming. _This is not the path of the Red Dragon Emperor! The only path of the Red is hatred and misery and destruction! Kill them all! Kill them all!_

The anger began to come back, only to recede as Dulio blew more bubbles. With every bubble that struck him, Issei's mind cleared a little further, until he could even hear what those around him were saying.

"Issei, please, end this," Gabriel said. He could hear the pain in her voice, the desperation and fear. Yet beneath it all was a faint glimmer of hope.

 _Kill her!_ the voices screamed.

Yet Issei did not attack. He stopped struggling, instead doing everything in his power to look his King straight in the eye.

 **"Guh... Guh... Guh... Ga... Gabr... Gabr... Gabriel?"** he slowly choked out, the words sounding like rough sandpaper coming from his twisted form.

"Yes, Issei!" Gabriel exclaimed as she grabbed one of the claws on Issei's armor. "Yes, it's me! Gabriel! Your King!"

He turned to look upwards.

 **"Du...Du...Dulio?"**

"That's right, Issei," Dulio said before he blew another bubble. "It's me. Your friend. Stop all this... _please_."

One more time, his gaze shifted, to the Russian Angel who hung far back. He could only imagine how much fear seeing him this way had caused her.

 **"Mi...Mir...Mir...Mira...Mirana?"**

At the sound of her name, the Ace of Hearts darted forward, spread her wings and flew over him, landing next to his massive helm with the trio of crimson halos above it.

 **"Mi-Mirana?"**

The woman threw an arm around his warped and broken head, tears dripping freely as she heard him say her name. "Yes, Issei, it's me! I want you back more than anything! _Please_ come back! Come back to me! _Issei!_ "

 _NO! KILL HER!_

For the first time since this had all started, Issei ignored these voices. He refused to even consider their statements, refused their hatred and rage.

Instead, he focused inward. Focused on the thought of Mirana's face, smiling and happy. On all of his good memories with her, the other Saints, and his parents. Perhaps there was still hope for them.

Everything of the Boosted Gear had to do with will, and his will now was focused on doing what they asked.

 _Free myself... end this... end it all...!_

* * *

For several seconds after Mirana finished her plea, the world hung still. The Angels hoped against hope openly, while Vali, who observed from afar, had the same thought, just more secretive.

Each nanosecond crawled by, and with every moment that passed, their hopes died a slight bit more. By the time five had passed, the group had had to resign themselves to the death of their fellow Saint.

Then, the armor began to crack. It started at the chest where Gabriel had stabbed in her blade and drained his power, but it soon expanded and widened to cover the entire armor.

One second. Two.

The armor shattered completely, the pieces falling away and vanishing.

All that was left as the ice vanished was Issei Hyoudou, lying unconscious on the ground.

* * *

 _And cut_.

 _Hoo boy, did I hate writing this one. It probably shows. Also yes, I'm going with the BorN depiction of Juggernaut Drive for this. Get over it if you care._

 _And yes, I will address the stuffs in a later chapter, don't worry your little heads._


	65. The Secret Revealed

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

When Raphael had watched one of his medical staff fall in front of him for no apparent reason, he'd been shocked even as the now-Fallen Angel was wrestled into Second Heaven. What had been even more bizarre was the report that came back with the Angels who threw him in there.

Apparently, they weren't the only ones who had been performing that same task.

From the First, Second and Fifth Heavens, more than thirty Angels had all fallen at the exact same moment for no apparent reason. Every single one had been within Heaven, working or relaxing or whatever else, when their wings had turned the color of coal. Raphael knew that there had been traitors in Heaven, but even the faint _pop_ he'd felt pass through him just before it happened didn't come close to explaining this.

Yet when he'd gone to Zebel, he'd found several of the other Seraphim standing there, all as confused as he had been. Raguel had claimed that two of the eight-winged Angels who worked under him had fallen. Remiel had mentioned that one of the watchers of Third Heaven was now in Second Heaven. Sandalphon and Sariel, meanwhile, had been in tears.

When he'd asked why, Raphael had learned that one of each of their Saints had fallen – Sariel's Six and Sandalphon's Four, respectively.

Raphael had been able to do little except offer his condolences. What else could one Seraph, one Angel, offer another when their brethren had been betrayed so?

Yet even as he did so, Raphael received yet another oddity. Near his ear, the distinctive shape of a communication spell formed. The King of Clubs stepped back to excuse himself.

"Lord Raphael," came the voice of his Ten, "Lady Gabriel's Ace has arrived in the hospital. She has Issei with her... he's unconscious and something bad's happened to him. She keeps going on about how he entered "Juggernaut Drive" or some such state-"

" _Juggernaut Drive?!_ " Raphael hissed into the communicator at his ear.

"Sir-" came Asteria's voice back, completely unused to the sudden mix of anger and panic in her King's voice.

"Is Issei Hyoudou still alive?" Raphael demanded.

"Y-yes, sir..."

"I'll be there in a moment."

* * *

When he arrived, Raphael had expected the worst. Issei missing limbs, bleeding out on the floor as his staff tried and failed to keep him alive.

Yet when he arrived, for the barest fraction of a moment, he couldn't tell what the commotion was about. On one side of the desk sat Asteria Stavros, his Ten. On the other, there was Mirana. Gabriel's Jack lay in her arms, unconscious and dirty but apparently unhurt otherwise. Yet despite that, the Russian Angel had tears streaming down her face.

"L-Lord Raphael!"

He nodded and indicated for her to follow him as he sternly reminded himself of what the Ace had said.

"What on earth happened?" Raphael asked as they entered one of the hospital rooms and laid Issei down.

"I-I don't know," Mirana said, sniffling as Raphael checked Issei's pulse and breathing. "I... we were alerted that... that something had happened in another dimension where Issei was... and he... he was a giant dragon... was attacking everything in sight..." She wiped at her eyes, trying in vain to return her face to a somewhat presentable state.

"Sounds like Juggernaut Drive, all right..." Raphael said as he confirmed that Issei's pulse and breathing were normal and he likely wouldn't need any major healing.

"Will he be...?" Mirana asked, unable to bring herself to finish her sentence.

"It appears so," Raphael said. "Apart from the apparent exhaustion that's knocked him unconscious, he doesn't seem to have any serious injuries." He shook his head. "Over and over again, Issei Hyoudou, your luck with cheating death surprises me..." His blonde-haired head turned to face Mirana again. "Did you somehow bring him out of it on your own? What happened in this... alternate dimension, exactly? For that matter, how did you even get there?"

Mirana's spirit calmed somewhat as she heard that the young man she had grown more attached to by the day had a chance at living. Her voice a tad steadier than before, she began to answer.

"Well, I was in the Hearts building, talking with the Joker and-"

She got no further along than that before Asteria's voice intruded in from behind her.

"Lord Raphael," the Ten said, her voice changed from its normally dry tone to one that bordered on panic, "we have two more patients in the reception area! Badly hurt!"

* * *

When Michael came down to Zebel after his precious few minutes alone, he couldn't say he was even remotely surprised to find several of the other Seraphim gathered. He was even less surprised to see two of the Seraphim clearly trying to restrain themselves from openly weeping.

Conspicuous by their absence were the other three Great Seraphim.

Raguel was the first to get words in the moment he saw the Archangel form from a cross.

"Michael, what's going on? What's happened to the system?" he asked, his voice calm and controlled as ever. "A number of Angels have all fallen inexplicably."

"I suppose it's about time that I explain this..." Michael said, nodding and taking a very slow breath.

Unlike what most people would have done, none of the Seraphim badgered Michael to get on with it. All were far too good at being patient for that, and they knew it would ultimately just delay things.

"With the help of Uriel and some unwitting aid from our sister's Jack... I have just reset the system of Heaven that is related to sin."

With that, Michael began to speak, finally filling them in on what he and Uriel had been doing for nearly the past week.

* * *

It was the scene Raphael had dreaded when he had come out there the first time.

In the arms of Gabriel, a woman who appeared to have been torn apart with a blade hung, several magical circles being all that kept her organs from spilling out. A man, equally ravaged and held together, was held in the arms of Michael's Joker.

"What in the world...?!" Raphael muttered. His superhuman senses quickly identified them as humans, though they certainly weren't anyone he knew.

"We were directed to these two by the people who made us aware of what had happened to Issei," Gabriel explained even as Raphael directed his staff to take the man and woman from his sister and subordinate.

"Will they live?" Dulio asked as he watched the two be laid onto gurneys and wheeled away, no doubt to surgery.

"Judging by a cursory examination..." Raphael murmured, shaking his head, "...their chances aren't good. I can tell they've already suffered immense organ damage and blood loss. Even my own magic probably wouldn't be enough to fix it. I'm sorry, truly."

Dulio's face fell. "Lord Raphael, it's not me you'd have to apologize to... it's him."

Raphael almost said "who?" before it clicked, and as the realization dawned, Dulio elaborated further.

"Juggernaut Drive requires the user to be overwhelmed by negative emotions, particularly anger and despair, to activate, if I remember the bare-bones description Issei once gave me to be right," Dulio said. "Normally, he'd never let that happen – Issei's hotblooded, but he knows where the limits are. Everyone has a weak point, though, and I think I know what sent Issei into Juggernaut Drive."

Even as Raphael's face grew horrified as he realized what was being implied by this, Dulio nodded towards where the gurneys had gotten to, lips set in a grim line.

"That man and woman? Those are Issei's mother and father."

* * *

"So you essentially went behind our backs?" Raguel asked, his voice colder than usual."

"Yes," Michael said, a slow breath expelling from his throat. "I did not know how many people the conspiracy had ensnared, and... I could not even be entirely sure that Uriel was not among them. I could not possibly risk this getting out, lest someone take action to stop it."

"Yet there is also no denying that you allowed Uriel to deceive one of your own sister's subordinates to do so," Remiel noted.

Another breath, unsteadier, released itself. "Yes, I did do that. I will apologize to him when this mess has been sorted out-"

"That, brother, will be the absolute least _any_ of us can do for him..."

All heads immediately snapped to the source of the voice. Even Raziel hadn't noticed her presence, and the other Seraphim were sure that she'd been cloaking herself up to this point.

Gabriel nodded towards the other Seraphs. "I bring yet more bad news, dear brothers."

"Oh, dear..." Michael said, rubbing his face with his palm. "What is it, Gabriel?"

"My Jack has just returned to Heaven – he's in the hospital at the moment."

"And why would that be?"

"He has just escaped the grip of Juggernaut Drive."

Several gasps went up from the Seraphs, but Gabriel put her hand up. "And as if that were not bad enough... two innocents have been caught in the crossfire and now fight for their lives against grievous injury – Raphael says their chances are slim."

"What is their status?" Michael asked urgently. "Have their families been contacted? Have they even been identified?"

"Given that their most immediate family is among our number, I think it's likely they already know. According to your Joker, Michael, those victims are my Jack's parents."

* * *

Michael's jaw hung open, an expression mimicked by every one of the Seraphs in the room. Horror in his face not unlike Raphael's was mirrored on the countenance of all of God's most powerful creations. All, that is, except Gabriel herself.

"If they die," Gabriel said, "their blood is on our hands as well as whoever attacked them initially."

"How's that, then?" one of the Seraphs asked.

"Because we should have seen this incident coming," Gabriel snapped. "We had information readily available as to the location of my Jack's immediate family, and we did not even consider that they might become targets as well. That information should have been erased from the system the moment we knew of Heaven's traitors, and yet we dithered. And for it, my Jack has likely reduced his lifespan considerably and two innocent people, having known of their son's status as an Angel for but a few days, are near death. My hands are the most drenched of all..."

She shook her head. "I let Ascalon be stolen – a weapon that just so happened to be in the same area as where this incident took place, and judging by the major injury suffered by my Saint's armored form during Juggernaut Drive, was used against him. I would go so far as to speculate that whoever did this to his poor parents used Ascalon to do it."

It was very, very rare that Gabriel ever let tears get beyond a few droplets in the corners of her eyes, but they flowed freely as she spoke.

"I failed my Jack. He, who has never raised arm against me, who has accepted his faults and strives to correct them. He, who refused to let himself be crushed by the burden his rescue hoisted upon him. And yet, when push came to shove and he truly needed my help... I wasn't there for him. You all have failed him as Seraphs. I have failed him as a Seraph... and as his King."

She turned and strode out, and when she was out of sight, she finally let the tears come in force.

* * *

As Gabriel vanished, the full weight of what she'd said crashed down on the shoulders of every Seraph present.

They'd wanted to protest as she'd spoken, yet the words died on their lips as they realized that she was right.

It took more than a minute before one of the Seraphim, addressing Michael, broke the silence.

"The... lower-ranking Angels will want answers... we can't keep this kind of incident from creating ruckus for long unless an explanation is given..."

Michael bit his lip, trying to ignore the guilt washing over him as he realized that Issei's entry in the system glitching out had occurred just a minute or so after the huge cluster of Angels fell. Somehow, he expected that the two were intimately connected.

"Yes... yes, you're right, of course," Michael said. "I shall return to the system for a moment and give the universal order to all Angels."

He vanished into a golden cross.

* * *

As he looked the system's screen over, Michael felt his heart thump as realized another oddity.

Where previously there had been thirty-seven who had fallen from grace... there now were only sixteen. The only way an Angel, fallen or not, completely vanished from the system was to die.

He remembered what Gabriel had said – about how Issei had entered Juggernaut Drive, and his own knowledge of what that state did to a person who underwent it. As he did, a sickening picture began to form in his mind.

Issei Hyoudou's parents being attacked. Him losing control. Activating Juggernaut Drive... and butchering the traitorous Angels in this "other dimension".

He shivered. Only a theory it might be, but it appeared more likely by the second that passed.

Shaking his head, Michael looked at Jack's entry again. It was as glitched as it had been before, but Michael refused to let himself tumble down that rabbit hole of speculation. Not yet, at least. Instead, he went to another function.

"All Angels – if it possible to do so without endangering life or limb, return to Heaven immediately and gather at the highest-point ampitheatre in First Heaven. I have an important matter that must be explained there immediately."

He could picture First Heaven now – the thousands of Angels coming towards the ampitheatre from every direction and side. Many would walk, many would fly, even more than both would simply teleport straight into the place that could have held every Angel in Heaven before the Great War.

Michael, of course, could have explained the matter through this same method of communication, but that would both leave his subordinates unsure if it was serious and likely leave the details being distorted by those who had heard it differently.

After a moment, Michael vanished.

* * *

Uriel had felt the _pop_ of the system resetting as well as anyone else, but unlike others, he remained shut up in his laboratory. At once, he both did and did not want to know if it had worked.

It was but ten minutes before he heard a set of knuckles bang against the door.

He supposed he wasn't surprised to see every single one of his Saints, Queen to Ace, bowing outside the door.

"Lord Uriel!" every one of them cried at once, but before they could start bombarding him questions, he put a hand up.

"I know what you're going to ask me," he said. "Stand, please."

The thirteen Angels did so.

He smiled as he looked over his deck. It had been a small joke that he'd intentionally selected capable warriors who happened to be named after Roman monarchs, just to see if he could build a deck entirely from that theme. The slots had filled up so quickly; once he'd finally sat down and checked how many names of Roman monarchs were still in use, he realized that it was hardly a limit at all.

"Lord Uriel?" Claudia asked. Specifying the question was unnecessary.

"There's been a... _reset_ of sorts. It's a long story, and I'm guessing that-"

At that moment, at the ear of all fourteen of the room's inhabitants, a communication circle formed, and Uriel smiled.

"Speak of the Devil."

 **"All Angels – if it possible to do so without endangering life or limb, return to Heaven immediately and gather at the highest-point ampitheatre in First Heaven. I have an important matter that must be explained there immediately."**

Nero and Maria's heads flicked around, the two youngest Saints looking around as though to confirm that the other Saints had heard the same message as they had before looking back to their King.

"Well, we've an order, do we not?" Uriel asked.

* * *

It wasn't but ten minutes after the order was sent out that the gargantuan ampitheatre was filled. Even with all of the thousands of Angels present, more than half the seats still stood empty.

Michael, all of his golden wings spread wide, stood in the center of the immense field in the center.

The Angels present couldn't be made out besides the vaguest of shapes. He knew that in the highest seats at one side where the nine other Seraphs of Heaven, but beyond that, the Archangel might as well have been addressing a smear of mixed-color paint.

As Michael cast a spell to massively amplify his voice, he exhaled.

The time for secrets was over.

 **"Can I be heard clearly?"** Michael asked.

The thunderous reply of the entire field answered this.

 **"Excellent. I shall not dither any longer."** He took one breath, and let the truth out. **"Two hours ago... there were traitors hidden among Heaven's number."**

* * *

The Hearts deck had grouped themselves together. Xenovia and Asia had tried to pry some information out of Mirana as they sat, but the Russian Angel had pointed to the center of the field and said nothing, even as her reddened eyes said there was quite a story.

But when Michael's words reached their ears, they were all struck silent. They weren't the only ones. Where before there had been thunderous demands of explanation roaring from the thousands of gathered Angels, there was now absolute quiet, every face carved in an expression of shock.

 **"As I said, there** _ **were**_ **traitors among our number. I assume you felt a slight** _ **pop**_ **pass through you, correct? That was, in effect, the reset of the system that was done in an attempt to root the traitors out – which appears to have succeeded. We currently hold those Angels who have fallen in our prison in Second Heaven."**

If they'd been up close, they would have seen Michael shiver.

 **"Since we will have to answer this sooner or later anyway, I shall give you the full story. Several days before the Peace Conference that ended hostilities between the factions, Issei Hyoudou, Gabriel's Jack and the current wielder of the Boosted Gear, discovered a note hidden in one of the library's books. Taking it on a whim, he showed it to my sister when we returned from that same event, as he could not read it due to it not being written in a language in which he was literate. That note, as it turned out, was an order from a person leading a conspiracy within Heaven to not tell anyone present at the Conference about the impending attack. Whilst this attack was a catastrophic failure for the enemy, the simple failure to report this information to the Seraphim constitutes a traitorous action in itself."**

As Michael continued on, the shock on the faces of the Hearts deck increased. Their eyes were glued to Michael as he spoke, preventing them from noticing the dozens of Angels who had turned to look at them.

 **"It was almost immediately after Issei Hyoudou retrieved the book he had found it within that we realized what we were dealing with. At that time, Issei was sworn to secrecy, as we did not wish to cause mass panic among the Angels of Heaven. I ask that you not demand explanation from the other Saints of Gabriel, as this is likely as new information to them as it is to all of you."**

All of them nodded unconsciously.

 **"The same night, Uriel and I spoke, and I confided what I thought I must do in him. He immediately agreed, and – admittedly without Issei Hyoudou's consent – took a small fragment of the Boosted Gear from the Jack of Hearts. After modification, that fragment was used to increase my own power temporarily, and allow me to reset the appropriate system section. That, if you were wondering, was the slight** _ **pop**_ **you felt – the system resetting. You need not worry. The rules have not changed unexpectedly."**

Unbeknownst to the Hearts deck, all of Uriel's Saints were currently shooting the Seraph a rather dirty look.

 **"What happened in the interim, however?"** Michael continued. **"Not long after that, an Angel – likely one of the recently fallen – called Xenovia Quarta away and locked down the training field where Issei Hyoudou was. After that, Lucas Truman attacked Issei Hyoudou with the Excalibur Destruction. Our current thought is that the traitors realized that he was becoming a larger threat, and sought to eliminate him before he could strengthen further. Do not take that as fact, as Lucas Truman never disclosed the exact reason for the attack. Issei Hyoudou won that battle, though not without grievous injury, as you all know."**

"So Lucas was a traitor in more than one way..." Xenovia murmured.

 **"I have also received word of a second incident involving Issei Hyoudou that concluded very recently – apparently, our own Red Dragon Emperor was sent into a state known as "Juggernaut Drive". For those who do not know... Juggernaut Drive is a state of activation of the Sacred Gears "Boosted Gear" and "Divine Dividing". In this state, the user's power increases tremendously, to that of easily equalling ten-winged Angels in its most basic and with the right application, might possibly be powerful enough to defeat the Seraphim. However, this state is a completely double-edged sword. In this state, the wielder loses their sanity and their lifespan is devoured to fuel it should another one not be provided."**

Mirana went white as a ghost as she realized the implications of this.

 **"In other words, Issei Hyoudou's lifespan has been reduced significantly. I do not know by how much, but... significantly. By thousands of years, at the very least."**

It was at those words that tears began to leak freely from the corners of Mirana's eyes. Her dear friend, a person she had accepted that she wished to be more than a friend, would be dead far earlier than she? How could this be happening? He had wronged no one who did not wholeheartedly deserve it. He had put every effort in and yet... fate had seen fit to snatch it away regardless.

 **"I hate to leave you all with such a heavy note, but I'm afraid that I've... very little levity to offer. The book on those who have betrayed Heaven has closed. Hopefully, it will remain so for good. We can only be thankful that Heaven still stands. Thank you for your time."**

* * *

The short announcement ended as suddenly as it had been announced. The Angels, who just minutes before had been rowdy before being struck quiet, now whispered furiously among themselves as they departed.

Mirana had vanished almost as soon as Michael had finished. No one had to guess at where she had gone.

Far above, the same thing was happening – though there were only two participants, and only one was actually speaking.

"So then, Gabriel," Uriel said, his voice low, "I've a question."

"Speak it," Gabriel said shortly, her eyes red and cheeks stained with fresh tears.

"You say that this battle in which your Saint employed Juggernaut Drive took place in another dimension?"

"Yes."

"How did you get there?"

"My presence was requested by a man named Arthur. The White Dragon Emperor and the infamous nekomata were present as well – though they made it clear they would kill my Saint's parents if we attempted to kill her."

"I see..." Uriel bit his lip. "You wouldn't happen to still have the coordinates of this... "alternate dimension", would you?"

* * *

Within five minutes of being given the coordinates, Uriel was within the ruined dimension. Almost immediately, he whistled at the impressive size of the thing, if nothing else.

After all, there wasn't much left of the place. The rubble that had once been buildings was scattered about in heaps, flung haphazardly by the battle that had apparently happened here. Uriel also took notice of a massive hole in the side of the dimension, and sent it an askew glance. He did not, however, investigate immediately; instead, he entered the sole building that was still standing.

Walking in, he could tell it was deserted. Yet despite that, he found himself investigating every room, as though there might be something worth finding here.

His search was rewarded by a computer console.

In the very back room, Uriel found a massive console, its image frozen in a view of...

"Gabriel's Saints' building?"

He shook his head as he said this. Of course this would be hear. The console was probably how this "Arthur" had contacted Gabriel, directly or not.

The Seraph immediately disabled the two-way mirror view and everything else before moving on. Unlike Arthur, he possessed the ability to read Hebrew, and found himself scanning the documents and memos.

 _Construction plans... contact with someone named "Georg"..._

He blinked at the mention of a "Hero Faction" in one of the memos, but being nominally allied with Khaos Brigade, the computer contained no more information on it. What it did contain was the final confirmation for this building's purpose – to coordinate their forces inside this barrier... which, if the memos could be believed, made it impossible to for one's sins to be tallied by the system whilst within.

Uriel was rather surprised by that. The Seraphim had wondered if there might be a way around the system at several points, but always their search ended fruitlessly. Yet apparently, whoever had been in contact with this "Hero Faction" had managed to do what Heaven's leadership had never come close to achieving.

All that left was the security footage.

But as Uriel scrolled back through the last several hours of footage, a distinct image caught his eye, and he pressed "Play".

The King's eyes widened. There, on the ground was Issei Hyoudou, being held in place by an eight-winged Angel. In front of him stood a man and a woman, staring vacantly in disheveled night clothes. And in front of the Jack, holding Ascalon, was...

 _Valkost..._

Uriel exhaled. Valkost had been, at one time, the strongest of the ten-winged Angels in Heaven, even beating out Dulio's strength when the latter wasn't in Balance Breaker. He'd always known she was somewhat opposed to the Seraph's more peaceful thought processes, but he had never imagined her to be a traitor.

 _"Well then, Issei Hyoudou?"_ the Valkost on the screen said. _"What will it be?"_

It was then that her wings turned black, and before Uriel's eyes, everything went to hell on video.

* * *

 _And cut_. _Yes, this took a while. What of it?_

 _Also, we are now at 200,000 words. Yayz._


	66. Down in the Depths

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

As the video finished playing throughout the core of Zebel, several of the Seraphim appeared nearly sick. Their breaths had frozen as they watched one of their strongest subordinates fell. They had remained silent from horror as that same subordinate stabbed a blade they had entrusted to a Brave Saint through the chests of the parents of that same Brave Saint. They'd watched, spellbound, as they witnessed for themselves what a Juggernaut Drive transformation looked like.

Gabriel was in tears once more.

As the video finally ended with Gabriel, Dulio and Mirana breaking Issei's Juggernaut Drive, Uriel turned off the projector he had set up on a table.

For nearly thirty seconds, none of the Seraphim spoke, none sure what would even begin to be an appropriate reaction to what they had been shown. The actions they had seen performed by a person they had once trusted had shocked the twelve-winged Angels to their cores.

It was Uriel who finally broke the silence.

"So then... I suppose we can dismiss any need for investigation, Raguel."

The addressed Seraph gave a mute nod.

"What did you say, Michael?" Raphael suddenly said.

The King of Clubs had been standing closest to Heaven's leader, and evidently Michael had been muttering something under his breath.

Michael turned to face the other Seraphs with a grim look on his face. "I... have yet another problem I must address to all of you..."

Several of the siblings let out frustrated groans, and not playful ones, either. The last day had been one problem after another. First there was the reset, then dozens of their subordinates had fallen, then they'd found out that Michael and Uriel had conspired behind all of their backs and drawn one of Gabriel's subordinates into the whole plot that had no guarantee of success, and then that same subordinate had used Juggernaut Drive just before his parents were brought into Fifth Heaven with what increasingly appeared fatal injury.

"I..." Michael started, before stopping and apparently reconsidering his words. "Just after the reset... dozens fell, as you well know..."

"We're all too aware, Michael," Raziel said impatiently. "Get to the point."

Michael nodded. It was rare that any of the other Seraphim would address him that way, but he was more than willing to let it slide when one considered the events of the day.

"I was watching this happen," Michael continued, "and... Issei Hyoudou's entry in the system..."

"It?"

"...it appears to have glitched at the exact moment he employed Juggernaut Drive."

Once more, the Seraphim present fell silent, and once more, Uriel broke the silence.

"What do you mean, "glitched"?"

"Issei's entry now appears as a jumble of meaningless symbols," Michael explained. "As well... something has affected his Brave Saint card..."

"He hasn't fallen, has he?" Gabriel asked through her tears. "I couldn't see his... his wings..."

"It does not appear so," Michael said, shaking his head. "Yet his entry... it isn't responding to anything at all. It appears as though he is halfway through falling and became stuck partway, but if what Valkost said is true, the emotions that forced him into Juggernaut Drive would not count against him."

"Then how did they fall inside that barrier?" Sandalphon demanded.

"I would guess that the sins they committed to reach that point in the system were being tallied by the system," Michael said, "but for some reason, they were not being counted against them. After the reset, those sins "went through" so to speak. It's only an educated guess, of course, but I don't see another immediate explanation."

"So what does that mean for the Jack of Hearts, then?" Raphael asked. "Say this glitch in his entry, whatever the source, clears. What if he _does_ fall?"

"Then I will reinstate him – if he wishes, of course," Michael said assuringly, though it was more directed at Gabriel than Raphael; his sister was trying hard to regain her composure but not having much success. "He lost control, yes, but given the circumstances his emotional state is completely understandable."

None of the Seraphs present argued, and the next words spoken by Uriel addressed the prior topic.

"So you believe that Juggernaut Drive somehow caused this glitch that's now affecting Issei Hyoudou?"

Michael nodded.

Uriel frowned. "I don't mean to come off as pedantic, Michael, but that's a correlation fallacy."

The King of Spades shrugged. "If you've another explanation, Uriel, my ears are open. For me, the timing is simply too perfect. A Saint achieves a state never-before-seen in Heaven and the system proceeds to react in a way yet unseen? It sounds less coincidental even as I say it to myself."

Uriel did not reply.

"What, then," Gabriel asked, her tone a mix of pain and raw fury, "will be done with these filthy animals now taking up space in Second Heaven? Will you cast them out, Michael? Or will you do what my Jack did with the last you subjected to that?"

Michael's face hardened. "After seeing what they have done to two innocent people in the name of destroying our peace? What do you believe I intend to do, Gabriel? Those Fallen locked in our prison have committed a far greater sin than impure intercourse. That they were not present is an irrelevancy. They knew that this was going to happen. They did not inform us or take action to prevent it, and are thus equally culpable for it. We will show this video to the rest of Heaven tomorrow, just to save Issei Hyoudou the time of answering the question of what happened." He looked at Uriel. "So, is that all of relevance that you dug up from that dimension's computer, Uriel?"

The King of Diamonds shook his head. "There is one other thing..."

"What's that, then?"

Uriel sighed. "The memos in the computers also mentioned something else – something the Angels and Devils need to know about with all haste. If I'm reading what they reference right... this "something" is another faction of the Khaos Brigade..."

* * *

When Issei Hyoudou opened his eyes, he'd expected to see, if he was lucky, the overhead lights that would have indicated he was back in Fifth Heaven's hospital yet again. The white lights would be reflecting off of equally white walls with crosses hanging on them, and the smell of antiseptic would hang heavily in the air.

The room in which he awoke was white, all right, but he wasn't on a bed. In fact, he seemed to be lying on what was very distinctly a tiled floor.

 _The heck?_

Issei gingerly pushed himself upwards, rubbing his eyes as he sat up. It was several seconds before he took in the environment around him.

What he saw did nothing to alleviate his confusion.

He wasn't alone in... whatever space this was. The entire room was completely white, as was all the furniture. There were numerous tables, four chairs to a table, dominating the center of the space.

At these tables sat dozens upon dozens of people.

There were men and women among them, and Issei even spotted a few that appeared to be around his own age.

"Uh..." Issei called, "sorry to bother you all, but... where am I?"

Not one person seated spoke a response. In fact, none of them even acknowledged he was there or that he'd said anything.

Nervously, Issei stood and walked over to the nearest one, a person who looked about his age.

"Hello?"

There was no response.

Issei put his hand on the young woman's shoulder and shook her. She did not react.

A hand waved in front of her face did not so much as cause her expression to change.

Issei shook his head and moved to the next person, but the same thing happened – they did not acknowledge he was there, or even seem to notice him.

"What the hell's going on?" Issei demanded. "Where am I?"

"You're wasting your time with them, Issei Hyoudou."

Issei's head snapped up at the feminine voice that spoke. It wasn't Gabriel, or Mirana or Griselda or anyone he knew. His head whipped around.

There, behind where he'd awoken, there were two couches set out, and upon one of them sat two more figures – one male, one female.

The man raised his hand and ushered him over.

Issei scampered towards them immediately.

"Sit down, Issei," the woman said.

She was beautiful, that was for certain, with wavy blonde hair and a slim figure, all covered by a dress with a high leg slit. Yet Issei didn't feel any lust, too buried was he by confusion.

Instead, Issei took a seat on the couch opposite the two figures.

"Now then, let's get straight to the point," the man said. "'Where am I?', you asked?" He chuckled. "Believe it or not, you're buried in the depths of the Boosted Gear. Even Ddraig's voice can't reach here, at least not right now."

"I'm... inside my Sacred Gear?" Issei stammered. "Am... am I dead?"

The woman chuckled. "No, Issei, you're not. Your consciousness was just tossed in here as a result of Juggernaut Drive. It shouldn't be too hard to get back out again, though Belzard and I would like to talk to you first." She gestured to herself. "Elsha, by the by."

"Okay..." Issei said, nodding slowly and trying to process what she'd just told him. "So I survived Juggernaut Drive? How? Ddraig told me that that's basically a suicide move. And how'd I even enter it, anyway? I don't-"

Issei froze.

"Oh God..."

Elsha and Belzard nodded grimly. "Indeed," Belzard said. "You were overwhelmed by negative emotions and you lost control. Though you have quite a bit of magical energy, and Ddraig was most likely able to channel that energy into fueling the Juggernaut Drive, though I doubt it was enough to absorb the cost of the Longinus Smasher."

"My parents..." Issei murmured in horror.

"Oh, dear..." Elsha said. Almost immediately, she stood and took a seat next to him, wrapping her arms around him. "My condolences, whatever they may be worth. Not that uncommon a reason for Juggernaut Drive to activate, sadly."

"They might make it," Belzard said as Issei accepted Elsha's hug. "You're an Angel, are you not? How were you brought out of it?"

"Uh... Lady Gabriel, Dulio and Mirana," Issei said, feeling a few embers of hope. "Three Angels."

"Well, there's hope for them yet," Elsha said. "Heaven possesses great medical capability, after all." She tousled his hair. "Always let hope stay with you, Issei Hyoudou. Never forget that."

Issei nodded, trying to keep his breathing steady and focused and focus on that thought. Surely they'd be okay if Heaven could treat their injuries, right?

Instead, Issei forced himself to focus on where he was now.

"Okay, but if I ran through all my reserves of magic, shouldn't Juggernaut Drive have killed me after that? Ddraig said the average possessor lives about thirty seconds after activating it."

Belzard nodded. "And then they're dead and all that's left is to destroy the armor that's now rampaging and killing people before it does any more damage. Life force isn't worth much to fuel Juggernaut Drive, but you probably figured that out already. Being an Angel, you just have way more of it than any previous wielder. It's simple mathematics, really."

"As far as we're aware," Elsha said, "you're the only possessor in history who's had Juggernaut Drive chew on their life force and live to tell about it. Your lifespan will be shorter, but you're not dead, at least."

"How _much_ shorter?" Issei asked.

Belzard shrugged. "Not sure. Our current estimate is that you lost a few thousand years of your lifespan, but given that Angels live absurdly long lives even compared to Devils, I don't think it means much."

Issei bit his lip.

 _So I won't live as long as I would have before... well, I guess that doesn't mean a whole lot, not right now. Still, I think Lady Gabriel will want to know about that... and the rest of the deck, too..._

"Let me get this straight," Issei said. "I lost control and somehow entered Juggernaut Drive. Before I ask anything else, how did _that_ happen?"

At those words, Belzard and Elsha's expressions turned dark, and Belzard pointed behind the couch on which Issei sat.

"They're the reason for that."

Issei's head turned to follow the man's finger, to look at the people seated at the tables.

"Who are they?" Issei asked, finally confronting his question. "Who are _you_? Really, who are you?"

It was Elsha who answered him.

"We, Issei Hyoudou... are the past wielders of the Boosted Gear."

At those words, Issei's head turned sharply to stare at Elsha. "The past possessors?"

"The previous Red Dragon Emperors, yes," Belzard clarified. "We wielded the Boosted Gear before you did. The young lady you tried first to get the attention of is the one who held it before you, one Cathy Rigel, I believe. She died in a mutual kill with the last White Dragon Emperor."

"And your souls are sealed up in here? That's horrible!" Issei exclaimed.

Belzard chuckled. "No, Issei. The only soul here is the one you possess. We... we'll, we're what you might call their memories, given a form your mind comprehends. Copies of them, anyway. Our souls are long gone, to whatever afterlife awaited us."

Issei blinked, finding this information oddly easy to accept and essentially ignore. "Okay, then... but why? Why are your memories here? And what did the past possessors have to do with Juggernaut Drive?"

"Why is there a chant for that awful Juggernaut Drive?" Elsha answered. "Who knows? The God of the Bible did bizarre things. I think he might have been the one who came up with that chant. You'd have to ask him."

"He's dead."

"Well, that's a small inconvenience for both of us."

Issei shook his head. "But what did they have to do with me using Juggernaut Drive? Ddraig refused to tell me the chant to activate it even when I asked him, so how would I have even known it?"

"Then you must have heard from him," Belzard said, "that the majority of the possessors did not live good lives, nor were many of them good people."

"He did say that, yes."

Belzard nodded. "Of the past possessors, Issei... nearly all have died violently and swamped with negative emotions. They don't care for much else. The past possessors you tried to speak to most certainly heard you – they're just totally disinterested in anything except destruction."

"Then why are you two not?" Issei asked, looking first to Belzard, then to Elsha.

"Because, Issei Hyoudou," Elsha said, "we are the only two possessors thus far to have died peacefully. Our lives weren't perfect or even particularly "good", by most standards, but we were more or less happy when death claimed us. As a result, our memories aren't overwhelmed by the hatred and anger that's consumed the others. Unfortunately..." Her arm swept over the dozens of possessors who sat in silence. "...there's far more of them than there are of us. Belzard and I tried to call out to you and to keep you from losing yourself, but our voices were drowned out by the others. We thought for sure there would be another possessor seated at those tables soon enough."

"What Elsha is trying to say," Belzard said, "is that the past possessor's influence crept into your mind. That's no strike against you; in a broken emotional state, it's virtually impossible to resist them. Once that happened and they'd wormed their way inside, they told you the chant and encouraged you to use it. They don't see anything beyond their own immense anger and wish to release it at every opportunity, no matter who it hurts."

"There's another thing to beware, Issei," Elsha said. "Surviving Juggernaut Drive will probably improve your strength in some capacity or another, but it also releases the thoughts of the past possessors. If ever you reach a point where you're that vulnerable again, the past possessors _will_ try to take over and rampage again. I don't say this with any anger, hatred or criticism, but you got very, very lucky the first time. I wouldn't plan on it happening again."

Issei's eyes cast downwards, towards the white floor, and he promptly changed the subject.

"Where am I, then? My body, that is? If my consciousness is here, where's that? Does it still exist?"

"Most certainly, Issei," Belzard said. "It's most likely that you're just unconscious, wherever you are. Any injuries your armor may have suffered during Juggernaut Drive shouldn't transfer over to your real skin."

"How do you know?" Issei asked. "If no one's survived Juggernaut Drive-"

"Not the case, Issei," Elsha said. "I was a magician, and possessed great stores of magical energy. In fact, that was the primary thing I used the Boosted Gear for – to enhance my spells and summoned creatures. But I was able to fuel the use of Juggernaut Drive with my own stores of magic." An annoyed look came over her face. "You'd think the Magician's Council wouldn't have taken issue with that, but nope! They don't like being shown up, apparently."

"You ever fight the White Dragon Emperor?"

She shook her head. "The White Dragon Emperor I met was... a bit like you, actually. He had no interest in continuing the rivalry. Nor did I, unlike a certain _someone_..." She flicked her eyes at Belzard.

"Hey!" Belzard cried. "I just liked fighting! Not my fault I got two White Dragon Emperors as opponents!"

"You beat _two_ White Dragon Emperors?" Issei asked.

"Indeed," Belzard said, chest puffed out.

"If we might get away from the battle maniac's exploits for a moment?" Elsha asked dryly. "We have one another thing we ought to address, do we not?"

Belzard made a face, but nodded. "Yes, there's that."

"Where's what?"

Elsha looked back at Issei. "With Juggernaut Drive's power released, Issei... it may be possible to evolve in a new way. One not yet seen. You're a unique wielder, Issei, one that couldn't have existed before now."

"Something rather indescribable," Belzard added. "Juggernaut Drive is the way all of us have used. Yet you have potential to grow differently. Don't let that opportunity go to waste." He looked up. "Oh dear... looks we're just about out of time, here. Your body's about to awaken in the real world. It'd help if you were there for that, wouldn't it?"

"Wait, I still-" Issei said, before getting cut off by Elsha.

"Don't worry, Issei," Elsha said. "If you want to talk, Ddraig can teach you how to dive into the depths of your Sacred Gear. We'll always be up for a chat. It isn't as though we're particularly occupied with other activities."

With that, she stood, pulled Issei to his feet, and hugged him again. After a moment, the brunette returned the gesture.

"It was nice to meet you, Elsha" Issei said.

"Oh, the same to you, Issei," Elsha replied as she embraced him.

For the first time during that conversation, Belzard stood, hand extended. Issei quickly took it.

"Good to meet you as well, Belzard."

"Absolutely!" Belzard replied. "Now then, Issei, you've got a place to be, don't you?"

"Apparently..." Issei said. "Now, how do I...?"

Elsha patted the couch he'd been sitting at. "Just sit here and shut your eyes. It won't take long."

Issei did so, and even as his eyes shut, he felt his body grow heavier.

Little by little, his consciousness slipped away...

* * *

Issei's eyes opened very slowly.

He was on his back once more, but this time, what he was lying on was soft, and over his body he felt the distinctive feeling of a blanket.

A quick whiff of the air and a look around told him he was exactly where he thought he would be when he awoke inside the Sacred Gear.

Yet again, he was back in Fifth Heaven's hospital.

Sitting up, he looked around a few moments to find that the room was empty otherwise.

Instead of standing, Issei began to speak.

"Ddraig? You there?"

 **"I'm here, Issei. Good to see that you're finally awake. You've been out for over a day."**

"So... that all happened?"

 **"Indeed it did, Issei. Your despair and anger crossed a critical threshold. Juggernaut Drive came out as a result."**

Issei's breath froze in his throat.

 _Oh no... oh God, oh my God..._

Despair and wrath were two deadly sins. If he'd given into those, then he had surely fallen.

 **"Worry not about that, partner. If you don't believe me, check your wings."**

Issei did just that, and to his surprise, they were as white as they'd ever been. That, however, wasn't the real surprise.

The real surprise is that there were now six of them, as many as Griselda or Mirana.

"What...?" Issei asked. "How?"

 **"You were in that alternate dimension, Issei. I recall that Valkost said that Heaven's system didn't tally any sins committed in there."**

"Then why'd she fall in there?"

 **"Ask Michael or whoever else."**

Issei nodded to himself. "All right, then. I'll do that. But why do I have six wings? I had four when I got pulled into that dimension..."

Once more, Issei found himself thinking about his parents, and his heart began to pound. He wanted to jump out of the bed and rush to find another Angel.

 **"Your wing count has increased because you've grown stronger, Issei."**

"How so?" Issei asked, trying to keep his voice calm.

 **"Your power's been boosted by the use of Juggernaut Drive. In other words, your Balance Breaker is no longer incomplete. In other words, you can use it on your own."**

A weak smile cracked Issei's face for just a moment. "Well, that's pretty nice, I guess..."

 **"There are some limitations, however."**

"And there's the other shoe."

 **"Now, now, don't be annoyed so easily. The limitations are such: You can only use it for an hour and fifteen minutes per day, and there's a forty-second "charge time", as it were. During that time, you can't use any of the Sacred Gear's abilities. Keep that in mind."**

"Got it. Thanks, Ddraig."

 **"Oh, no problem. Though, I've got a question for you."**

"What is it?" Issei asked as he stood. He was growing more worried by the second, and he desperately wanted some reassurance that his parents were still alive. A quick examination confirmed what Elsha had said – there were no new injuries to his flesh. He was the picture of health.

 **"Do you have a name ready for that subspecies?"**

"No, not really. Maybe I'll come up with one later. I've got too many things to do right now."

 **"Understood. Good luck, partner."**

"Thanks."

* * *

Issei made a strange sight as he stepped out. He was still dressed in the pajamas he'd been wearing when he had been pulled into that bizarre space, and he didn't pay them any mind.

There was no one else in the hall, but Issei couldn't have cared less about what time it was. He was going to find someone, _anyone_ , and find out if Belzard had been telling the truth.

He didn't have to look long. A few second's walk found him in the lobby. One quick look there...

"Lady Gabriel!" Issei said, bowing to the Seraph who stood there.

"Rise, Issei," the King of Hearts said. Her voice sound a mix of exhausted, pained and relieved.

As soon as he did, Gabriel was on him, unashamedly hugging him as though he was about to vanish forever. Though Issei's heart was racing, desperate as he was to get some information on his parents, he indulged her.

It wasn't until nearly ten seconds later that she pulled back, though she didn't release him.

"I was so worried..." she said. "You've been out for twenty-six hours..."

"I understand, Lady Gabriel. My apologies for worrying you."

She shook her head. "No, Issei Hyoudou, it's I who owes you an apology. I have... I have seen the video. The building we came in through in that alternate dimension captured the entire sequence. We all saw what happened. All of Heaven has seen the video."

Issei nodded. "I-I see... but that still leaves one question, Lady Gabriel."

"I know which one, too."

"So... my parents? Did they survive? Are the okay? Where are they now?"

As Issei said this, Gabriel's expression began to shift. The relief turned to pain, then to anger and back to pain. Tears began to gather at the corners of her eyes.

Seeing that face sent a feeling through Issei – one that was like a hammer slamming down on him. Crushing him.

No matter how much he wanted to deny it, to attribute it to something else, he knew exactly what that expression meant. Belzard had been wrong.

His hope had been for nothing.

As Issei felt the few threads that had been keeping his emotions together unravel, and his own tears began to creep out from the corners of his eyes, Gabriel hugged him close and whispered into his ear.

"Issei, I... I'm so sorry."

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Sorry this took a while. I've had no time to do anything the last week or so. College._

 _Also, Volume 7 shows that the use of Juggernaut Drive vastly reduced both Issei's charge time and quadrupled how long he could use it. Finishing it isn't that big a stretch._


	67. The Tears We Have Shed

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

 _Warning: Angst ahead. If you dislike that, skip to just after the fourth line break._

* * *

As Issei stood there, his emotions unraveling like threads of poorly-wound rope, everything came through at once – anger, pain, grief, and many regrets. He tried mightily to restrict his emotions, to not show his feelings on his face.

He failed horribly.

As he broke down crying, Gabriel pulled him close once more and pressed him into her robes.

"Just let it all out..."

* * *

Issei was never sure just how long he stayed wrapped in Gabriel's arms, letting his tears and sobs be absorbed by the fabric of her vestments. It was safer there in the cloth, away from the cruelty of reality. For fractions of moments, he was even convinced that this was all a nightmare from which he'd soon awaken.

But then he would realize once more that it was anything but. That demon, that beautiful woman whose face had masked immeasurable hatred for him, had murdered his parents.

Over and over again, that same sequence would play out in his mind. He would be back in that wretched and malicious shadow of the Vatican. There he would be, on his knees, watching Valkost's wings turn from white to black. Again and again, he would be forced to watch as the psychotic Fallen Angel stabbed his father and then his mother through the chest.

And every single time, he would be racked with a fresh round of sobs, and he would despise himself a small fragment more.

He was an Angel, wasn't he? A creature meant to bring hope and defend those who couldn't defend themselves?

 _I don't know why you're surprised!_

Issei knew the voice that he continuously heard in his ear wasn't real. Its speaker was dead, gone from this world by his own hand. But that didn't stop the unwelcome voice from berating him, insulting and mocking his efforts.

 _You couldn't protect yourself from me._

He wanted that voice to shut up, but it had become entwined with his own consciousness. All he could do was bear it out.

 _You couldn't protect Asia from me without the help of people who actually have a clue what they're doing._

Besides, what the voice said wasn't wrong, was it?

 _You couldn't keep those two exorcists safe, either._

He couldn't protect _anyone_ else, really.

 _Why'd you think this would be any different?_

He had no answer.

As the time wore on, meaningless to Issei save for the cruelty that this construct of his own mind inflicted upon him, his emotions shifted about. There was the obvious grief and pain, but there was also anger. Yet even in his state, weeping into the robes of his King, the tiniest shred of logic still shown through, and with the traitors dead, the anger was denied to him.

Who was he going to take his anger out on?

Mirana, the young woman who obviously cared for him and treated him wonderfully?

Gabriel, the woman who had been instrumental in saving his life twice over?

Raphael, who had, whether directly or indirectly, saved him as many times as Gabriel?

Michael, the Seraph who had taught him to use fire?

Uriel, the one who had massively expanded his reserves of magic and even took his side against Michael?

Griselda, the woman who'd come to accept him despite initial misgivings, the one who'd taught

him his combative skills?

Asia, the innocent girl who'd never done wrong by anyone?

Xenovia, the swordswoman who had been an unflinching ally?

Irina, his childhood friend who had taken to him the moment he had revealed his real form?

Dulio, who'd practically been an older brother to him in his early days in Heaven and who would have died for anyone in Heaven without a second's hesitation?

The answer was no, of course. None of these people were people he would ever consider targeting with his anger.

That just left one target.

* * *

Gabriel doubted Issei even noticed when she quietly teleported the two of them into his bedroom in the Hearts building, nor did she say anything to him. Keeping her arms around her weeping Jack, she allowed him all the time he needed. He'd lost his family, directly or not, because of her and her decisions.

 _What kind of King am I to you, Issei Hyoudou?_

Gabriel had done plenty of berating of herself in the last day or so, and there was no doubt in her mind that she was as much to blame for what had happened as Valkost.

She'd been the one to do such an idiotic thing with the sword that had emboldened the traitors. Beyond that... she'd been the one to reincarnate him as an Angel.

At the time, it had seemed so obvious a choice, and even in hindsight Gabriel had never figured out another way to fix the problem except to simply not answer Issei's prayer. Yet she hadn't known what had awaited her when she had first heard the words blast through her ears, and the option had been denied to her the instant she had stepped from Heaven. She also knew that Issei probably would have died in her arms if she had simply brought him to Heaven to treat his wounds. Logically, reincarnation was the only certain way to save him.

But that didn't assuage the guilt she felt.

So the lone female Seraph stood there, holding her Saint and hating herself for not being able to do anything else. She remained strong, whispering words of kindness and comfort in his ear as his tears flowed and his grief poured from his throat. He did not seem, then, the young warrior that this short span of time had forged; instead, he simply seemed a grieving child, broken by the deaths of his beloved mother and father.

Yet even as he wept, Gabriel worried not for his status in Heaven. Even with the despair that she could feel rolling off of the teenager in her arms, she cared nothing for that deadly sin.

What Michael had told her had seen to that.

* * *

When Michael had entered her quarters within Sixth Heaven, Gabriel's tears had dried. She had expended the energy she would allow herself for her own frustration. Heaven and its mission were what mattered, and she had to focus on that – and that meant her own emotions had to be ignored.

"Gabriel," Michael said, "I have a... small complication that I must address to you before your Saint awakens."

Gabriel gestured to the chair sat at the table in her room.

Unlike most factions, which afforded greater luxuries for those higher in rank, the quarters of the Seraphim were nearly identical to the ones the Saints and lower-ranking Angels dwelled within. The lower-ranking Angels had, on more than one occasion, offered to change this and render the Seraph's quarters more extravagant, but the Seraphs had collectively and steadfastly refused this.

As Michael sat down, Gabriel's eyes reflected none of her usual joyousness.

"Gabriel..." Michael began, "...do you remember that issue in the system regarding your Jack's Brave Saint card?"

"Of course," Gabriel said.

"I believe I have traced the source of the problem, odd as my explanation will sound. I have already informed the other Seraphs, though I wished to simply tell you this one-on-one."

"And what is this problem?"

Michael exhaled. "I watched the footage several times and compared the timing to that of the glitch's occurrence. The timing is simply too perfect – the Juggernaut Drive's employment was what caused this error."

"We had already agreed upon that, yes," Gabriel said, perhaps with a tad more force than she intended. "Where are you going with this?"

"Given that your Saint is unconscious as of right now, I took the opportunity to examine his Brave Saint card, which gave me the answer I was looking for. Somehow, some way, the Juggernaut Drive injected some sort of foreign "code" into Issei Hyoudou's Brave Saint card, and by extension, into the system itself. The system, however, was not designed to accept new code – hence, his Brave Saint card and his profile in the system lost their functionalities when the system could not reconcile the new code with the old."

"So his Brave Saint card can no longer be used to form combinations?" Gabriel asked.

"No," Michael said, "it cannot. But that is the smaller issue compared to what else appears to be the case."

"Which is?"

Michael swallowed, setting his arms on the table at the elbows and lacing his fingers together.

"If my analysis of the system's readouts is correct... Issei Hyoudou is no longer capable of falling."

Gabriel's jaw slowly dropped open as she blinked. "How is that possible?"

"As I said, the system no longer appears to register him properly. One could say that your Jack simultaneously exists within and without the system."

"Could the code not be removed?" Gabriel asked immediately. "While I do not believe my Jack would freely abuse an immunity from falling such as that, I don't believe he should retain that immunity, either."

"I attempted to do so as soon as I noticed," Michael replied. "Yet the code appears to have wormed its way into every facet of the Brave Saint card. And extraction of that card, while possible, would almost certainly be fatal to your Jack; hence, I did not do it."

Gabriel sat there a few moments, taking this in, fists clenched beneath the table, processing what had been told to her.

"Very well," she said finally. "If that is the case, it is the case." She sent a strong look at Michael. "I will not, however, keep the first of these facts secret from the others."

Michael shook his head. "Of course not. That would potentially lead to disaster if Brave Saints learn only too late that he cannot form combinations. But I would advise-"

"That I not inform anyone beyond Issei himself that he is no longer truly bound by the system to which every other Angel is subject?" Gabriel said, cutting Michael off.

"I question if you should even tell _him_ that, actually," Michael said.

Gabriel's eyes cut at her brother with an unmistakable flicker of anger. "No, Michael. No more secrets. We have kept enough of those, and I will not hide this from him or others."

"Are you not worried about how this will affect other's perceptions of him?" Michael asked. "Your Jack has already had to overcome the opinions of many whose thoughts were set against him."

"Then I must hope he does so here as well," Gabriel replied. "I should not have to tell you why we must not keep this secret, Michael – if it ever comes out that we have been hiding the inability of one of our Saints to fall, in addition to the entire incident with the traitors, we risk losing the trust of those that follow us within Heaven itself. I care deeply for my Jack, as well I do all my Saints, but I will not potentially sacrifice Heaven's stability on the altar of my Jack's convenience. Nor, from my own observations, would my Jack want me to."

Michael exhaled. "Perhaps you are right, perhaps you are not. I do, however, know you very well, Gabriel. I know that look on your face right now – nothing I can say will change your mind, will it?"

"No."

The King of Spades nodded slowly. "If that is your wish, I will abide by it." His eyes shifted downwards. "You have heard, I assume, of the fate of Issei Hyoudou's mother and father?"

Gabriel's eyes squeezed shut. "Of course I have. If you've nothing else to say, Michael, I will depart for Fifth Heaven. It is as much my fault as anyone else's that this has happened to him. If he still holds any loyalty to Heaven after all the pain it has brought him, I will consider it a miracle on its own – and I certainly will not hold it against him if he does not."

Michael said nothing in response to that, only nodding after a few seconds.

Not long after that, each Seraph departed the room.

* * *

Issei was never sure just how long he stayed there in his King's arms, accepting the comfort they provided. Even after the tears had dried, he had remained buried in the cloth of the female Seraph's vestments.

As the flow of tears started to wane, Issei did not feel the distinct sensation of having been "cleaned out" that one often experiences after a long session of weeping. Instead, he simply felt cold. Empty.

As all things must end at some time, Issei did eventually pull back, allowing himself to look out at the world once more with bloodshot eyes. His met Gabriel's, and his almost instantly turned down as he tried to wiggle out of her arms.

"I..." Issei said as he attempted to pull back, "I am sorry, Lady Gabriel... that was... inappropriate of me."

Gabriel, however, did not let him go, instead sliding one hand beneath his chin to make him look up at her.

"No, Issei, that was not inappropriate in the slightest. If I had had some objection to your action, I would never have allowed it. It is not wrong to feel grief and pain and sorrow when one has lost a loved one. The Seraphs are no different from you in this regard. Do you believe I did not weep for the death of my father? That all the Seraphs and all of Heaven did not shed many tears upon his passing?" Her hand moved from under his chin to caress his cheek. "I will assure you that we did, and that we grieved deeply upon his final departure. In some respects... we still do."

Issei's eyes looked away from hers again, and he said nothing.

Gabriel pulled back slightly from Issei at his silence. "Now then, Issei... I must inform you of something important."

"What bit of bad news do you have now?" Issei asked, his tone decidedly uninterested and his eyes rather vacant.

"Well..." Gabriel said, "it's simple enough. Your Brave Saint card is no longer functioning. When you activated Juggernaut Drive, some sort of code overrode the card and has glitched the system. From what I understand, Michael is still looking into it. What is important is that you will no longer be able to form combinations with other members of the Brave Saints, as the code has glitched the system's entries regarding you. Thankfully-" Gabriel spoke quickly here, as she could see panic start to fill the vacancy in her Jack's eyes. "Thankfully, that glitch has not spread beyond you. However, it's also resulted in another concern."

"What's that?"

Gabriel swallowed. "As far as Michael can tell, Issei... you cannot fall from grace."

Issei's bloodshot eyes opened as wide as they could go, but he appeared to be stuck for an answer.

"As if I need say it, Issei Hyoudou, while this is a development both interesting and troubling, I fully expect you to continue to act according to your station. I don't mean to be cruel or stern by this, but I still demand that you behave in a manner more or less proper for our kind. If you should abuse your immunity, you will be removed from the system and cast out... and if that cannot be done... I needn't tell you what will be done then."

Issei shook his head. "I don't intend to do anything of the sort, Lady Gabriel." His voice had turned back to the hollow monotone with which he had spoken before.

It hurt Gabriel dearly to see her Saint like this, with a wounded mind and soul that she was unable to help fix. In an odd sense, she was somewhat thankful for the restriction of sin being lifted from her Jack's shoulders, at least for the time being. The King of Hearts had not paid it much thought, but Issei was at least free to feel whatever he needed to in order to grieve properly.

Gabriel did not, however, say these things to Issei. Instead, she stood and took his hand, gently pulling him to his feet.

"Issei, there are a few matters that need discussing in Fifth and Sixth Heaven..."

* * *

When the twin crosses that formed into the shapes of Issei Hyoudou and Gabriel appeared in the laboratory Uriel occupied, it mutedly struck the former how quiet the entire place was. Before, when he had come to retrieve his reserves of magical energy, the entire place had been bustling and rather noisy, with machines running in different locations and other Angels milling about. It had all created a surprisingly welcoming atmosphere. Now, however, the laboratory stood deathly silent, no one present at all.

Issei would later realize that having been out for forty-six hours would make it Sunday – the other Angels were simply taking the Lord's Day off, as always. But that changed nothing about how unwelcome they suddenly seemed.

As Issei's thoughts danced around without any logical thread with which to tie them, Gabriel strode forwards and knocked on the door that led to Uriel's office.

"Enter," came the distinctive boom of the King of Diamond's voice.

Pulling the door open, Gabriel ushered Issei through it, following closely behind him.

Once the door clicked shut, Issei found himself once more within the laboratory of Uriel, the tallest Seraph standing on the opposite side of the room near one of his writing desks. Turning to face them as King and Jack entered, he nodded towards Issei with a sad expression on his face.

"Greetings, Issei Hyoudou. I... have heard of what happened to your parents... you have my condolences and greatest sympathies."

"Thank you, sir," Issei said, his tone rather emotionless and restrained.

"Uriel, what we came here for?" Gabriel asked.

The Seraph nodded quickly at his sister and subordinate. "Yes, Issei. I have something for you." He turned to his desk for a moment, opened one of the drawers upon it, reached in and withdrew an object before turning back to the two other Angels in the room.

It took a moment for Issei to process what Uriel was holding.

"The fragment, sir?"

Uriel nodded. "I assume you want this back, given that my acquisition of it was not exactly willing on your part. Once again, I apologize for that." At that, Uriel walked over and attempted to hand the fragment over.

Issei, however, did not take it. Instead, he looked up at Uriel and cocked his head slightly to one side.

"Something the matter, Issei?"

"Sir, is there any chance you could develop something of use to Heaven with that fragment?"

Uriel blinked. "Well, I quite possibly could, but-"

"Then keep it, sir. The Boosted Gear's function hasn't been altered in any way since you took it, and if I'm being honest, I'd rather never see anything from this past incident ever again... except for my sword." He turned to look at Gabriel. "I assume that I'm still free to use Ascalon?"

"Of course," Gabriel said immediately. "I'll return it to you after we've concluded our business in Sixth Heaven. We've kept it under lock and key in the armory there."

Issei nodded, though there wasn't a hint of pleasure in the action. "Thank you, Lady Gabriel."

"Well then," Uriel said, nodding to the brunette and pulling back his arm. "Thank you for that, Issei Hyoudou. If and when I come up with something using this, I'll let you know."

"Thank you, Lord Uriel."

"Will that be all, Uriel?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes, that's all."

"Then my Jack and I have business with Michael as well."

"Very well," Uriel said. "Good day, both of you."

"Good day."

* * *

It wasn't much of a surprise to either Issei or Gabriel that Michael awaited them in the entrance hall of Zebel. He was seated at the central table there, eyes shut as the water from the fountains surrounding it at its corners gurgled in their spouts.

The moment Issei and Gabriel stepped forwards, Michael's eyes opened and he assumed a more dignified pose in his seat.

"Good afternoon, Issei Hyoudou," the King of Spades said. "As good as it can be, under the circumstances. Know that you have the sympathies and regrets of all of the Seraphs. We failed you as leaders by not predicting the traitors' obvious action, and we can only hope you will find it in your soul to forgive us."

It was obvious that Michael had been sitting there, rehearsing this in his head, though it was still spoken with the warmth and genuine emotion that would be required for Issei to believe Michael's veracity.

"Lord Michael," Issei said, "you don't need to ask my forgiveness. You didn't attack my parents or have anything to do with those who betrayed Heaven. I assume none of the Seraphs did, either, by the way you've phrased that." The words were spoken with little emotion.

Michael's head cocked to the side in a surprised manner. "Then I thank you for your kindheartedness and generosity, Issei Hyoudou." He gestured to the other chairs at the table. "Please, take a seat wherever you desire. I have a few small questions I wish to ask of you, if it's not too much trouble."

"Not at all, Lord Michael," Issei said, taking the seat in closest proximity to his stride. Gabriel sat down next to him a few moments later.

Michael nodded. "Issei Hyoudou, I must ask this right away, and I apologize in advance for pressing this note. What is it that you intend to do now, if your parents are no longer with us?"

Issei shrugged. "I certainly can't stay in Kuoh, sir. I can hardly live in an empty house that I'm not paying for. And I can't live with my extended family – my grandparents are both dead, and I don't have any aunts or uncles."

"I see..." Michael said, nodding. "Then you intend to remain in Heaven full-time from this point forwards?"

"I don't see any other options, and there's nothing left for me in my home town. The Devils and I weren't anything beyond friendly acquaintances, and I don't have any friends who are human, either. There's nothing left there besides my memories, and I think I ought to leave those in the past."

Michael nodded again. "I won't argue with those points. Now then, is there anything you want from your old home?"  
"Maybe some old photo albums or the like. Not much else. The other stuff doesn't mean much to me in the long run."

A third nod. "Then I've one final question for you. What is it you wish to do with your parent's remains? What were their wishes?"

Issei shrugged. "I don't know, sir. My father had some Shinto leanings, but he wasn't a dedicated practitioner by any means. We don't have a family plot that I know of – my grandparents were cremated, and I don't have a clue what they had in mind for their funerals. I don't think they had wills, either."

Michael bit his lip. "If that's the case, Issei... do you have any preference?"

"Not particularly, sir. If burying them in Heaven would be the least labor-intensive, that would probably be for the best."

It struck Michael then just how clinical Issei's words were. He could certainly understand Issei being unaware of what his parents' last wishes would have been – the funeral arrangements of one's own parents was not something most teenagers were aware of, even at Issei's age. But the sheer detachment with which Issei addressed the topic gave Michael a small feeling of foreboding.

Was he forcing himself to remain completely emotionless? Or was something else going on?  
Almost immediately, however, he shook off the feeling as he recalled his own state after the death of his own father – it was as though Michael was observing himself as he had once been.

"Very well, Issei," Michael said. "I'll inform Fifth Heaven immediately. Their funeral can be conducted within a day."

"Thank you, Lord Michael," Issei said. "Is there anything else?"

"No, Issei Hyoudou. Thank you for your answers."

Issei stood and pushed his chair in, but Gabriel stayed seated.

"You may go, Issei," Gabriel said. "I shall remain in Zebel for the time being. I suspect you'd like some time alone."

"Yes, Lady Gabriel. Thank you."

He vanished into a cross.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _Yes, I'm fully aware that in canon, Issei's grandmother is alive. Here, she is not. The reason for this is simple – she's a minor character who contributes nothing at all to the plot except to have an excuse to get Issei to leave Kuoh temporarily, and I don't feel like tangling the story up by having Issei break the news to her_. _Issei also apparently has some uncles, but since they never appear or affect anything, they can be removed without altering anything else. Good night._


	68. Change the Course

_I do not own Highschool DxD_.

* * *

For more than an hour after returning to his bedroom in the Hearts building, Issei found himself staring uncomprehendingly at the ceiling. The immediate pain that had scorched his soul and heart was gone now, but nothing had been left in its wake. Emptiness had crept in and seized his soul in a death grip, and Issei had no real drive to push it out. Not right now, at least.

Instead, his thoughts began to drift away from the past and towards the future.

The idea of never having to attend school again without having to worry about a career was a thought that had seemed too good to be true every time he'd ever imagined it. Yet here he was now – Michael had fully respected his decision to simply not bother with school any longer, and he could be fairly certain that if he paid his dues to Heaven, they would be quite fine with handling his few needs. Yet the thought didn't bring him any joy for the burdens it lifted from his shoulders. No benefit was worth what it had cost him – what it had cost the two innocent people he called family.

He might have fallen asleep after his eyelids pulled themselves shut. He doubted he'd have known the difference. Any nightmare his brain could conjure up certainly couldn't be any worse than what reality had served him. All he knew is that his brain suddenly focused on the sound that shot through his ears. It was a sound he'd heard numerous times before and identified with the unthinking automation of a machine.

After a few moments, he slid off of the bed and pulled the door open.

He wasn't particularly surprised at who stood there.

Mirana's eyes focused downwards, obviously taking only the most reluctant of joys in seeing him again. "Hello, Issei," she said, her voice pained.

"Hello," Issei said. "Is there something you need?" His words were emotionless, empty and devoid of the life that had once defined them.

Mirana shook her head. "Nothing... nothing physical..." As if on impulse, the ash-blonde Ace embraced Issei, clinging tightly to him as though he might vanish at any moment. Yet unlike all times before, Issei didn't respond in kind, nor did he show even the slightest flicker of embarrassment as he usually did. If anything, Issei's skin felt cold. Clammy.

"Issei..." Mirana whispered in his ear, "I'm sorry this all happened..."

Even as she said the words, Mirana knew how clumsy and awkward they sounded. It wasn't for lack of desire to help her fellow Saint, her dear friend for whose love she had steadily grown to yearn; it was a simple lack of perspective.

Mirana had never known her own family. She had been dumped on doorstep of an orphanage when she was no more than a year old. The future Angel might as well have been born on that doorstep for all the difference it made; the other children of that facility had been her brothers and sisters until the day an exorcist had happened to stop in, seeking temporary shelter whilst on a mission. It had, of course, been granted, and Mirana ended up keeping him up very, very late while pestering him with questions about his job.

It hadn't been long after that, at the age of ten, that Mirana had been offered the chance to become one herself.

Yet even as a practicing exorcist, Mirana had always worked alone. She had earned critical acclaim, yes, but she had never forged the sort of near-familial bond that fighting alongside someone else for an extended period of time tended to create. And that same acclaim, alongside her own cursed nervousness and intense anxiety in large-scale social situations had isolated her even further. It wasn't a lie to say that for all her skill and fame in the Orthodox church, Mirana Shatarova had had few, if any real friends within its walls.

All that was to say that Mirana didn't have the faintest idea what words to say to the Jack of Hearts. She didn't know how to act beyond being generally empathetic. She was painfully aware of these things, and her own nonexistent experience with grief.

And she hated herself for that as she disentangled herself from Issei a moment later.

Yet when she asked if he wanted to talk, Issei refused her, simply asking to be left alone.

* * *

Mirana walked away from Issei's room with a dejected look in her face, her footsteps echoing against the floor. Eyes cast downwards, she did not see the Queen until she had nearly crashed into her in the hallway. Asia stood behind Griselda, and Xenovia would surely have been there as well if not for Sister Lanza needing help from her that day.

Even with the current state of affairs, the business of the church and Heaven had to go on.

"How is he?" Griselda asked, her tone revealing her own prediction.

Mirana shook her head. "He's... he's torn up, as you'd expect... said he wants to be alone..."

"But that can't be-" Asia started to say, before Griselda laid a hand on her shoulder and looked at blonde-haired Angel with a gentle expression.

"If he says he wants to be alone, Asia, I believe the best course of action is to accede to that request. Dealing with grief is a long and difficult process, and pestering him is likely to have the opposite effect of your intention. I know that you mean well, but when his emotions are as volatile as they are at the moment, it is more likely that he will begin to regard your attempts at connection as evidence that you are against him by not honoring a simple wish."

"But what if he succumbs to despair?" Asia exclaimed. "What if he-"

Then, her eyes widened as she remembered what her dear King had told them all nearly a day earlier.

"Oh..." Asia's eyes slid to the floor. "That's not a problem anymore..." She shook her head. "It still doesn't feel right, though..."

None of Gabriel's Saints could argue with that.

* * *

Issei didn't stay in his room very long after Mirana left, but his teleportation out left even himself mildly confused.

Perhaps it had been instinct, perhaps simple force of habit. But he had not gone to Kuoh Academy, or to the library or to anywhere else.

Instead, he found himself in the front room of the training and exhibition field.

How many times had he come here? How many hours had he spent being trained by Griselda, who constantly pushed him harder and demanded more effort than he was showing? No matter how much he'd complained about how difficult of a mentor she was, he'd never hated it, not really. He'd known she had only the best of intentions, and he'd even begun to enjoy it after a time. The exhaustion had been gratifying, knowledge that he was slowly, ever so slowly, honing his body into a weapon.

Yet all of a sudden, none of that seemed to matter anymore.

All those hours spent in training hadn't changed that he was completely helpless against Valkost. What had defeated her was a power that had always been there but he'd never dared use.

But even worse than that was a feeling that grew more intense even as he opened the door to the currently-empty field.

All that effort had been wasted because it was applied wrongly.

A certain Seraph's words came back to him as he thought through the disaster, and he clenched his teeth. Right then and there, Issei realized what he needed to do to ensure nothing like this could _ever_ happen again.

"Ddraig, are you there?"

It took a few seconds for the dragon to reply, and when he did his voice sounded rather uneasy. **"I'm here, partner."**

"How do I master the Juggernaut Drive?"

There was an uncomfortably long delay before Ddraig replied, and when he did, his voice had gone from apprehensive to incredulous.

 **"What?"**

"You heard me."

 **"You're telling me that after Juggernaut Drive drove you mad and sliced off a few thousand years of your lifespan, you** _ **still**_ **want to mess with it?"**

"That state doesn't just a person crazy. It gives them a ton of power, too. If I can learn to use one without the other, then we're golden. Maybe I can get it to run on just my stamina or something." Issei remembered Elsha's words about "evolving differently", and decided that that could wait, if it ever happened at all. He had the magical energy to fuel it even if his hopes didn't come to pass – the past possessors had told him as much. Sure, he couldn't use this "Longinus Smasher", whatever it was, but perhaps that wouldn't be necessary.

 **"That's a very bad idea, Issei. You're overestimating yourself."**

"And estimating myself accurately hasn't gotten me anywhere yet. Are you going to tell me or not?"

 **"I don't know, Issei."**

The brunette blinked. "What?"

 **"** _ **You**_ **heard** _ **me**_ **. I don't know, Issei. I have no idea how you'd master the Juggernaut Drive. And even if you did, wouldn't you be closer to a dragon than an Angel? You always hate being compared to a dragon, don't you?"**

"At this point, Ddraig? Screw how I feel about being seen. It hasn't done me much good."

 **"It's what created that subspecies."**

"And a mastered Juggernaut Drive would be way stronger than that. What's your point?"

 **"And we come back to the first answer I gave you. Asking me how to master Juggernaut Drive is pointless, because I don't know."**

Issei chewed his lip and chose a different issue to try to address. "Then what about that countdown on my Balance Breaker? I think we can both agree that that's nothing but a hindrance neither of us will miss."

Ddraig snorted. **"See answer one. I have no idea. I've never had a host who had a charge time to their Balance Breaker and I certainly don't know how to reduce it."**

Issei let out a frustrated sigh, rubbing at his nose. "Okay, one last question."

 **"Hit me."**

"Well... after I used the Juggernaut Drive and was unconscious... I met the past possessors' memories in the Boosted Gear."

 **"Oh?"** Ddraig's words were spoken in a lower, breathier rasp.

"Yeah. They told me you could explain how to talk to them again. I figure that maybe they know something you don't."

 **"I assure you, Issei, they don't. I'm not opposed to your speaking with them, but they won't be able to tell you anything I don't already know."**

"I'm not so sure of that, Ddraig," Issei said. "But even then, tell me anyway."

 **"Very well..."**

* * *

Once Ddraig had finished his explanation, Issei turned and walked back into the entrance area, taking a left and splitting off to the armory.

He figured that it would be less likely that he'd be interrupted there.

Even so, he made sure to hide himself in one of the gaps between the cases, seated with his legs crossed and his back against the wall. Once situated to his satisfaction, Issei shut his eyes and began to focus and perform the mental steps Ddraig had given him.

Slowly but steadily, his consciousness slipped away...

* * *

Issei's eyes pulled open, and he saw white.

"Issei!"

Shaking his head slightly at the familiar woman's voice, he looked up.

He was on the couch he'd been seated at when he'd jumped back to the real world the first time through. Across from him sat Elsha and Belzard, both looking just as jovial as they had beforehand.

"I didn't expect you back here so quickly," Elsha said. "It hasn't been all that long. Less than a day, I think."

"Yeah," Issei said, nodding.

"What of your family, then?" Belzard asked. "Good news, we hope?"

At that, Issei shut his eyes and shook his head, that same frigid emptiness washing through him as he was forced to address the topic once more. It had vanished for a few moments when he spoke with Ddraig, but the slightest reminder left his soul feeling as though an arctic wind had swept through it.

Elsha's fingers covered her mouth as both of the past possessor's faces fell. "Oh, Issei... I'm so sorry..."

Issei put his hand up, shaking his head perhaps a little _too_ vigorously. "Don't. Please, just don't. I just want to ask you what I came to ask you. This one's for you, Elsha."

Elsha's fingers fell back into her lap. "Yes, Issei? What is it?"

"You said you used Juggernaut Drive without going mad, didn't you? And that you kept your life force safe by using magic as a substitute?"

"Yes, Issei, I did."

"How'd you do that,? Hang on to yourself, I mean? And is there any way to make it so the insanity stops being a problem at all and so the power doesn't break your mind?"

Elsha folded her hands under her chin. "Issei, you're living under a small misconception."

"What's that?" the brunette asked.

"I think you have a mistaken idea of what destroys a person's sanity when employing Juggernaut Drive. 'Power' as granted by Juggernaut Drive, which massively increases physical attributes, cannot destroy a person's mind. It can most certainly destroy their body, but that's a different question and not the primary concern. In spite of its immense power, Juggernaut Drive isn't strong enough to literally start ripping apart your flesh."

"Then what does it?"

In reply, one of Elsha's slender hands slid from beneath her chin to point behind Issei. His head turned.

Only then did he remember who else was here. The hooded figures sat there still, none appearing to have budged an inch from where they had been before.

"The past possessors didn't _just_ tell you the chant to Juggernaut Drive, Issei. Remember what else I said – that they want to release their anger regardless of the consequences. They don't just drive a wielder to insanity. They're what _keeps_ them in that state and keeps the Juggernaut Drive inherently unstable."

Issei chewed on this, trying to recall what it had been like to be in Juggernaut Drive before Dulio had done whatever it was that he had done. Yet the memories were blurred and hazy, as though Issei had been ninety-five percent asleep through the entire sequence. He couldn't make out any specifics prior to those bubbles.

Instead, he asked a different question.

"So what would Juggernaut Drive be like if it were stable?"

Elsha's hand slid back underneath her chin. "It would be a most excellent ability, Issei Hyoudou. Far less draining and likely even stronger, to the point that I think it would warrant a new name. Unfortunately, there's a rather large barrier in the way of that." She nodded towards the past possessors. "Their bloodthirstiness and unquenchable desire to destroy is the true 'curse' of the Juggernaut Drive. You would have to find a way to calm those feelings in them. And no, I can't even begin to advise how you would do that. I tried many times in life, but my words were never even considered by them. I wish you the best of luck."

"Disperse eternal hatred..." Issei said absently. "Makes you wonder..."

"And one other word of warning, Issei," Elsha suddenly said.

"What's that?"

"As a person who used Juggernaut Drive several times, I want to inform you that you cannot use Juggernaut Drive again right away. Your magical reserves were drained to essentially nothing as a result of its use the first time around, and recharging them to any respectable level will take several weeks at the absolute lowest estimate. That's before anything else you might do – like teleport, for instance."

"Any way to make that happen faster?" Issei inquired.

"None that I'm aware of."

Issei nodded. "Thanks, Elsha."

"Sorry I couldn't be of more help," Belzard said, shrugging. "But I never used Juggernaut Drive at any point in my life, so..."

Issei nodded again. "Well then, I suppose I'll be off. I'll be back, I promise."

"We look forward to it, Issei," Elsha said, smiling.

Issei returned her expression, before lying back into the couch and shutting his eyes.

* * *

When Issei came to in the armory, he had no idea how long he had been out. His discussion with Elsha and Belzard hadn't lasted very long, but the Jack wasn't sure if time flowed differently within the Sacred Gear compared to without.

At the very least, that would go a long way to explaining why he felt so stiff.

"So, Ddraig, it looks like your claim of "the past possessors don't know anything I don't know" was way off the mark."

 **"Oh, was it now?"** Ddraig's voice sounded slightly miffed.

"They told me quite a few things you didn't," Issei replied. "Like how the Juggernaut Drive curse actually works, for one. Did you know that it's actually-"

 **"The hatred of the past possessors overwhelming the host? And that it heavily destabilizes the Juggernaut Drive into the death sentence that it almost always is? That the past possessors don't hear reason? Yes, Issei, I know all of these things."**

Issei blinked. "Okay, if you knew all of that stuff, why didn't you just tell me? Why let me go bother the past possessors?"

 **"Because I felt they could use your company. I should have known they would give you false hope."**

"What do you mean, 'false hope'? That there might be a way to-"

 **"It can't be done, Issei. You can't get the past possessors to see sense. You think you can, but you can't. They are totally consumed by their own anger and resentment towards everything and everyone. They don't have any ability to look at things with even a shred of objectivity. I guarantee you'll have no more success in reasoning with them than Elsha did."**

"Thank you for the vote of confidence."

 **"Would you rather I'd lied to you? They only care about blasting their anger and venting it on the world at every turn. Get that through your head."**

"I already have..." Issei said, but his thoughts had gone elsewhere. It wasn't for inattentiveness; in fact, it was just the opposite. He'd heard that statement from Elsha and Belzard before... and now that Ddraig had said it, something had clicked somewhere in his brain. "Hmm..."

 **"Oh dear,"** Ddraig said dryly. **"You've got some idea or another in your head, don't you?"**

"Something like that."

That, of course, wasn't quite fact. The brunette had already come up with the answer. The only question was on the method he'd use to achieve it.

He had begun to try to come up with a plan even before he'd walked out of the armory.

* * *

Within the Sacred Gear, Ddraig's frustration was boiling. Why couldn't he just accept the truth?

Elsha had been a far more suave and convincing, not to mention powerful, host. If she couldn't talk sense into the past possessors, then Issei certainly couldn't. Yet Issei had refused to see that, and Ddraig was left wondering if his senses might be scrambled from the deaths of his parents.

Ddraig hadn't said anything to Issei since receiving the news of his parent's deaths – he didn't trust himself to not simply make how Issei felt even worse. And he most certainly didn't want to take the risk of driving Issei further into despair by some unintentionally harsh word or another. He didn't have the interpersonal skills. He felt awful for his host, truly, but the Red Dragon Emperor knew that he wasn't the one who could help him through this.

Yet his host's stubbornness wasn't the only reason Ddraig was frustrated. Something else had cropped up: A single damn image.

Ddraig had long since grown used to resigning himself to a duel to the death between his and Albion's hosts, and was sure that the time truly had come for Issei. He'd certainly never expected the White Dragon Emperor to intervene with any intent but to kill. Yet he had, and in his shock, Ddraig had telepathically thanked Albion for their intervention when Issei's true allies showed up.

It was when Albion had given him a gruff acknowledgment that things became truly strange. Ddraig had been sealed for a long, long time, and for a fraction of a moment he thought he was finally going senile or whatever the draconic equivalent might be. Yet, at the exact moment that Albion had said "You're welcome", a single image forced itself into Ddraig's mind seemingly from nowhere. It was as though some tiny, unrelated occurrence had triggered the recurrence of a memory long-since thought buried.

It was a single moment of a fight between himself and the White Dragon Emperor long before they were sealed. It was foggy to the point that Ddraig felt as though he was trying to make out figures in the mist, but it was just enough to be able to recognize the situation.

What he could not remember for the life of him was _what_ exactly he himself was shouting in that memory. It might have been just one of his normal calls of "Boost!" or something of that nature, but Ddraig couldn't be sure.

No matter how hard Ddraig thought about it, he couldn't even begin to figure out what it was he was saying in that memory. It was as though it was floating far beyond his reach, a tiny light in the fog, too dim yet to make out its origin. All there was was that light, that tiny flicker of hope that there was something there.

Yet for as fruitless as the endeavor was, Ddraig couldn't keep himself from thinking about it. He was a smart dragon, wasn't he? Shouldn't he be able to remember such a thing as what he might have said on this occasion? Or anything else about it besides this one image, for that matter?

No answer was forthcoming, and yet Ddraig still couldn't keep himself from wondering. He hated that feeling of something being missing, and right now there was an enormous gap in his memory.

It was as he continued to turn it over in his mind, even while Issei went off to do god-knew-what, that Ddraig began to realize something else, something that he supposed he must have always known but had never put much thought to before.

Ddraig knew he'd spent a huge amount of his life fighting with Albion.

Yet besides the one that had resulted in his and Albion's sealings, Ddraig found that he couldn't recall any of his many, many clashes with the White Dragon Emperor in any specific detail.

* * *

 _And cut_.


	69. The New Faction

_I do not own Highschool DxD._

* * *

Metal rang against metal as the enchanted blades smashed into one another. Darting in and out, striking each other with immensely strong blows, Arondight and Durandal bashed and clanged, the two blades not even warbling beneath the impacts. The two people who held them, each only seventeen, respected their blades for what they offered them. Both respected power and brute force immensely – some might say a little too much.

Xenovia and Nero each jumped back at precisely the same moment, each reconsidering their attack angles. Each Saint was soaked with sweat, yet neither had lost their breath despite the vigorousness of the activity and the sheer weight of their massive swords, both of which were held in only one hand of their respective owners.

It wasn't the first time or the fiftieth that the two so-called "power idiots" had crossed blades with one another. They'd been rivals in the church for their opposite Holy Swords and fighting philosophies. Sure, Nero had always had the advantage by simple virtue of being a Sacred Gear possessor, but Xenovia was compatible with a sword that should have rendered his Sacred Gear moot – the operative words being "should have".

There was a reason that Nero had been made a Brave Saint long before she had.

Xenovia still had only a basic control over the sword of Roland, and while Arondight was weaker, Nero had more stamina. Yet that had never stopped their spars from being fun and something she looked forward to whenever she got the chance.

Yet the normal joy that Xenovia found in crossing blades with her rival was gone. Not when the other male Saint in her life was in the state he was in.

She'd returned from her duties at her church, a medium-size facility in a village in Spain, to find that Issei had indeed awoken from his short coma. Yet he apparently wanted only to be alone, even refusing the company of Mirana, the Saint he couldn't have had a more obvious crush on.

It hadn't been too long after that she'd pushed her way into his room... only to find it completely empty.

It was then that she'd sought Nero out, just to focus her worries somewhere else.

Yet even as she lined up another attack angle, Nero suddenly planted his sword in the ground.

"What, giving up?" Xenovia asked.

"Your mind isn't quite here, Xenovia," Nero said. "I can tell that much. Thinking about Issei?"

"For a boneheaded power maniac, you're pretty perceptive." The retort had none of its usual joking sting.

"That's rich, coming from Ms. Durandal," Nero said. "Look, Xenovia, there's no shame in admitting you're worried about someone else in your deck. Especially after that video..."

Nero visibly shuddered, and Xenovia followed suit.

It hadn't been but a day before that Michael had called the entirety of Heaven together once more to watch exactly what had happened to Issei.

Nearly the entire video had been horrifying in its sheer violence. Even the former exorcists that made up most of the reincarnated Angels weren't quite adjusted to the amount of bloodshed in it.

What made it even worse was who was behind it.

Nero had only met Valkost once, but he had gotten nothing but a positive impression of her – powerful and steadfast, yet compassionate to her fellows in Heaven and almost unimaginably gentle with believers and nonbelievers alike. Nero would readily admit that he'd had a brief crush on her.

And while Xenovia had never met Valkost at all, she had heard of her in her brief time in Heaven – of her skill and devotion to her slain father's teachings.

Yet Valkost had still butchered two completely innocent people, and what had made it so much worse for the blue-haired Angel was who those people were.

She'd known the Hyoudou couple. She had stayed at their house, shared several meals with them and spoken at length with them after Issei had let her stay there for a brief period before he'd brought her to Heaven. They were the definition of a perfect couple, a match so perfect that it could have been made by God himself.

And then one of God's own children, a born Angel turned Fallen, had butchered the Hyoudou elders for essentially no reason. More than anything else, the sheer pointlessness of what Valkost had done struck Xenovia's nerves.

Killing the Hyoudou couple offered Valkost quite literally no benefit – it would not bring her back to Heaven, and it would not get Issei's cooperation. She'd done it solely to hurt Issei, a person who was no threat to her whatsoever and had repeatedly invited her to kill him.

Then, that horrific transformation had happened, and Issei quite suddenly was a threat. He'd killed everyone, even Valkost in the end, and probably would have destroyed himself if it hadn't been for that man in the white armor, Dulio, Mirana and her King's intervention.

Mirana had later told her that the man was, in fact, none other than Vali Lucifer, the wielder of the White Dragon Emperor – the very same man who had apparently threatened to kill Issei's family during the Peace Conference just to make him fight a little harder. Xenovia hadn't understood that, either.

The whole event ended up utterly gruesome in its ending, and Xenovia could only guess what might have been going through Issei's mind. She had privately wept for the deaths of Issei's mother and father, though she'd known them only a short time. Irina had been much worse.

Xenovia couldn't begin to imagine how hard Issei must be taking this whole event. She remembered how close he'd been to them and how much he'd wanted to protect them from the supernatural.

Where Xenovia's feelings were a complex web, Nero's were far simpler. He knew Hyoudou, knew that the brunette was a lot like him in many respects. Or at least, he thought Issei was like him.

But he'd never seen or heard, of what he'd seen in that video. He'd never seen Issei genuinely enraged beyond all reason, and what it unleashed terrified him. That twisted, broken, horrible corruption of dragon and Angel was something that he'd already had at least one nightmare about.

He'd tried to shake that fear away by his consideration of what his own King had said when he'd asked. Uriel had told him flat-out that Issei almost certainly hadn't activated Juggernaut Drive intentionally, and he certainly wouldn't use it to hurt anyone in Heaven.

Yet that sense of unease remained all the same.

* * *

Issei strode into the library with a sense of focused urgency and purpose, thoughts gathering around a certain idea. He paid the person on duty no mind, striding past them with a gait purposeful yet mechanical. His six snow-white wings and golden halo of light made themselves visible as he stepped towards the central gap in the floors. A few flaps of his wings sent him upwards towards his intended destination.

The Jack of Hearts hit the floor walking, thoughts directed towards a specific goal. He knew what sort of spell he was looking for, but not exactly what book it might be transcribed in. Yet he didn't ask anyone else about where to find it. He wanted to be alone with his own thoughts.

Once he reached a bookshelf, he began running his hand down the tomes of magic, looking for any title that sounded like it might be what he was looking for. Every time he thought he'd found one, he would open the book and scan the contents for a specific spell name. That did not, however, make finding one specific spell any easier – there were literally thousands of books on this floor. Not helping matters was the at times unhelpful titles. A book titled _The Infinite Metric of Light_ , to Issei's ears, sounded like a guide to expanding and evolving one's light-based abilities, but was actually centered on increasing one's formation speed to nearly ludicrous degrees. To Issei, that just seemed unnecessary, and he skipped it over.

Issei spent over an hour there, looking through books for the barrier spell that Mirana had tried to teach him. Yet for all his looking, he couldn't find it. He found books on many elements, different methods of manipulating light and a dozen others, but aside from the very last book he picked up (one that, if the introduction was to be believed, was focused on limited spatial manipulation), the brunette could find neither the book containing the spell he was looking for nor anything else close to it.

He did, however, write down the name of the last book.

Issei didn't stop his search just after doing this because he'd suddenly lost the will to continue searching. On the contrary, he would have been willing to keep checking until he'd read the contents of every book on the fifth floor.

No, he stopped because he heard the distinctive sound of his name being called.

"Issei?"

The brunette turned slowly, to look at the speaker. It was a distinctly male voice, one he hadn't heard much of in recent days but knew well all the same.

"Dulio, could you answer something for me?"

The blonde-haired man's eyebrow quirked up. "What is it?"

"How would you get someone to look past the hatred that's consumed them?"

Dulio blinked at him, looking the brunette over with a rather confused expression. "What do you mean, Issei? Who is this person? You?"

Issei shook his head. "Not me. Other people."

"Who, exactly?"

Ordinarily, the Jack would have felt frustration mount as he struggled to figure out a way to explain his predicament in a way that didn't make him sound insane. But his soul was numb. He couldn't have felt that even if he wanted to.

Instead, he just told Dulio the truth.

"The zombified memories of the previous possessors of the Boosted Gear that cause anyone who uses Juggernaut Drive to go insane if they can't resist their influence."

Issei expected Dulio to appear confused or shocked, or to nod and gently tell him that he ought to get back to Fifth Heaven for a psychological evaluation. Or, perhaps even more insultingly, that he needed some rest.

Instead, Dulio's brow furrowed and he stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I see…"

"You believe me?" Issei asked.

"You forget that I'm a Longinus wielder too, Issei. Sure, mine's not quite as… _unique_ as yours, given that it doesn't have the soul of a Heavenly Dragon inside of it, but it's a Longinus all the same. Sacred Gears are strange things, and Longinus are stranger still. Yes, I believe you. I suppose you've already tried to talk to them and it didn't work?"

Issei nodded.

"Hmm…" Dulio said. "All I can think of at that point is to exhaust their anger."

"That's what I figured, too." Issei moved then to turn back to the bookshelf.

"Issei, I came for a couple of reasons, and discussing that particular subject wasn't it."

Issei turned to look at the Joker with vacant eyes once more.

Dulio stepped closer. "Issei, I won't offer you my condolences – I see them as empty words that don't help at all. But…"

As he said that, the blonde-haired man closed the last bit of distance between them and wrapped his arms around Issei, embracing him tightly as he spoke in his ear. "You might not have come from a church facility, Issei, but you're my junior Saint. To me, that's the same as being my younger brother. I know I can't offer much in this situation, but… I lost my parents too. I was younger than you were – no more than ten – but I remember that day and how it affected me like it happened yesterday. If you want to talk about anything at all, I'm here."

Issei nodded. "Thank you, Dulio."

The Joker released him and nodded towards him. "Now then, Issei, I have a message for you from Lady Gabriel."

"Oh?"

"She said she'd like to speak to you at the training field."

* * *

When Issei arrived at the training field, he spotted Gabriel there immediately, back turned to him. As he approached and fell into the expected bow, he heard her humming slightly.

"Rise, Issei," Gabriel said after a few moments. "Thank you for coming so quickly."

"It's no trouble, my Lady," Issei said. He still spoke with no emotion, each word an unchanging monotone.

Gabriel turned to face him then, and when she did, he saw the scabbard in her hands. A familiar handle protruded from the top.

Issei's thought was confirmed when Gabriel extended the scabbard towards him in an offering gesture. "Your weapon, Issei Hyoudou. I assume you wanted this back?"

In truth, Issei had barely given it any thought after his discussion with Uriel. His thoughts had switched gears to the Juggernaut Drive, and everything else had seemed secondary. But he said none of this to Gabriel.

Instead, he simply nodded and thanked her as he took his weapon back, pulling the blade from its scabbard out of impulse and holding it up vertically. It caught the light, reflecting off a recently-cleaned surface.

"Now then, Issei," Gabriel said, her tone delicate, "I'd like to make you an offer. It's purely your choice whether or not to take me up on this, and I understand perfectly if you'd rather not."

"What's that, Lady Gabriel?"

Gabriel took a deep breath. "I would like to do what, in hindsight, I should have done from the very beginning. I would like to train you in combat personally, to help you hone and refine your skills."

"Is that necessary, Lady Gabriel?" Issei asked. "For you to take time out of your schedule to do that? I don't want to burden you, and Griselda and Mirana are both good instructors."

"If it were a burden I couldn't bear, Issei, I wouldn't be making the offer. I also say, without a hint of arrogance, that I am a vastly superior swordswoman to either of them and am far more familiar with both photokinesis and the Angelic magic system. Anything related to your own abilities you might wish to learn, I can very likely teach you."

"Does that include the Holy Fortress?"

In reply, Gabriel raised her hand. From the palm that was its center, a glowing, white barrier formed, one denser than Mirana's by far. Then, she dropped her palm, the barrier vanishing as she did so.

"Then yes, Lady Gabriel, I'd like to take you up on your offer. Your generosity is very much appreciated."

"You're welcome, Issei. We can begin immediately." With that, Gabriel's palm raised to the empty air.

At her open palm, a glowing white circle formed, inscribed with the shape of a cross. From the center of that cross, the handle of a sword extended. Then, the moment Gabriel had clasped her fingers around it, she withdrew it from the circle.

As Issei looked the somewhat odd-looking blade over, Gabriel nodded. "True Belisarda. My weapon of choice. Before we begin, Issei, I'd like to ask one final question."

"Yes, Lady Gabriel?"

"Why were you so keen on that specific barrier-type spell?"

Issei took a deep breath, exhaling it as slowly as it went into his lungs. Ultimately, however, he felt no more restrained by nervousness with Gabriel than he had with Dulio.

"Well, Lady Gabriel, what I have to say is going to sound very strange…"

* * *

Michael, Sirzechs and Azazel were all gathered in Sixth Heaven.

Or rather, Michael was in Sixth Heaven. The other two were somewhere in the Underworld and the Grigori's main facility, respectively. Their presences were in Zebel due to full-body communication spells that had been set up to facilitate the sharing of events. It was, for reasons none of them could quite explain, much easier to share information between themselves when they could see each other.

"So, you're saying that Issei Hyoudou's name should be struck off Kuoh Academy's records, Michael?"

"Indeed," Heaven's leader said.

Sirzechs nodded. "I see. I'll inform Rias immediately. She effectively runs the Academy from behind the scenes, after all. Truly tragic what brought this on…"

Azazel nodded as well but added no words of his own. Michael wasn't surprised by that in the slightest; the Governor-General of the Fallen Angels had never been particularly smooth with subjects like this.

Instead, after a moment, Azazel cleared his throat.

"Now then, Michael, I seriously doubt that you've contacted both of us just to tell us that one of your Saints is pulling out of school."

Michael shook his head. "Certainly not. I have some information of extreme pertinence to all of us. Within that sinless dimension I described, we were able to retrieve the contents of one of the traitorous Angel's computer systems. We're still examining the data for anything else we might have missed, but what we have recovered so far is unmistakable. The Khaos Brigade was involved in setting up this barrier, and it isn't the Old Satan faction."

The Devil King and Governor-General each nodded. In truth, none of them were particularly concerned about even the leader of that faction's combat capabilities, at least when facing off against one of them. If Cattleya was anything to go by, they'd go down easily enough in a straight fight. The real problem was what kind of ruckus they might create in the meantime, and who might use them to further their own ends.

"Then what faction is this?" Sirzechs asked.

Michael whistled slightly. "It's apparently referred to by its membership as the "Hero Faction". All I can tell you for certain is that they have the wielder of Dimension Lost among their number. A person called "Georg"."

"Georg?" Sirzechs asked. "Like the magician who made a contract with Mephisto Pheles?"

"The very same."

Azazel's eyes narrowed. "I've never heard of this "Georg", and we keep a pretty close watch on the Longinus possessors, Michael." His brow furrowed.

"Something on your mind, Azazel?" Michael inquired.

"Well, I've been sending out Fallen Angels and Sacred Gear possessors to check on the Sacred Gear holders – you know, the usual things. But lately, I've been getting more and more reports back that my subordinates can't find the Sacred Gear possessors they're supposed to be checking on…"

"You think they might have some connection to this new faction of the Khaos Brigade?"

"Quite possibly. I'm not going to put down any absolutes, of course, because I could be completely off the mark. But I have to admit that I think it's quite a coincidence that a terrorist organization just so happens to have a wielder of a top-tier Longinus among them, and that not long before we learned this, Sacred Gear users began disappearing."

"What might they want them for, do you think?" Sirzechs asked.

"As I said, it could be a coincidence. We've got nothing that says yet that these two things have any connection."

"Indulge me for a moment anyway."

Azazel shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine, in that case. Maybe they want to steal their Sacred Gears?" He shook his head. "I really hope that's not the case. Sure, the Fallen Angels figured out how to take a person's Sacred Gear out of them without killing them a long while ago, but they wouldn't have access to that information. And death by having a Sacred Gear ripped out of your body is a pretty horrific way to go. And of course, with that many Sacred Gear users, you'd want to do it fast. The only fast way is the lethal way."

Sirzechs nodded. "I see… that is indeed a worrying development. Thank you for that information, Azazel. Will that be all, Michael?"

"Yes," Michael said. He nodded politely towards the leaders of the other two factions.

Without another word, their forms disappeared.

* * *

 _And cut._

 _I'll admit that I'm drawing on my own experience with feelings of grief when describing Issei's, because canon doesn't give it much of a description and I can't jump into another person's head to feel their view._

 _Second, Indra establishes that a Sacred Gear can be removed from a person without killing them (he does it to Georg, Cao Cao and Leonardo), and given that the Fallen Angels research Sacred Gears pretty heavily, it's not much of a stretch to think that they'd have figured out a way to do it, too._


End file.
